Centaury (Centaurium erythraea)
Flowers: June to September. Height: 30cm (12in).
Centaurium is derived from the Latin Centaurus. This refers to the myth that Chiron, the legendary Centaur in Greek mythology who was believed to be an expert in herbal medicines, discovered the plant’s medicinal properties. Erythraea too has been drawn from the Greek word denoting red and refers to the red coloured flowers of the herb. (The word pink was not used to refer to a color until the 17th century. In medieval times, shades of pink would all have been called red.) The plant was mentioned in Chaucer’s Nun’s Priest’s Tale. Centaury flowers are etched on the tomb of the well known English poet William Wordsworth.
Medicinal: The Saxon herbalists prescribed it largely for snake-bites and other poisons, and it was long celebrated for the cure of intermittent fevers, hence its name of Feverwort. A bitter tonic herb, Centaury possesses antiseptic properties and was used for the treatment of any condition that required the digestive juices to be stimulated. Culpeper’s Complete Herbal (1653) said that the juice of the herb, with a little honey added, was good to clear the eyes from dimness, mists and clouds that offend or hinder sight and was “a wonderful good help against the biting and poison of an adder”.
Magic & Myth: It was used to attract good luck and ward away evil or “wykked sperytis”.
