History of Aromatherapy

Aromatherapy, while relatively new to the Western World, goes back a long way. Although the term essential oil is a recent one, civilizations have been using incense, perfumes and cosmetics for thousands of years. Herbs and spices have been used in cooking for a long time, but their use has often been linked to both religious and medicinal purposes. Indian literature, dating from around 2000BC mentions the use of cinnamon, ginger, myrrh, coriander and sandalwood. The Chinese have a long tradition of alternative medicine. Aromatherapy is just one of a number of treatments which include acupuncture, reflexology and herbal remedies. The Egyptians were renowned for their herbal potions and ointments. Temples were filled with incense. Corpses were embalmed in oils of cedar and myrrh. Egyptian women wore perfume. Greece and Rome were introduced to the riches of the far-away places. Camphor from China, Cinnamon from India, Gums from Arabia.

Much of the knowledge gained by earlier civilizations was lost to Europe during the Dark Ages. The Arabs excelled in the manufacture of perfumes during the thirteenth century. During the Middle Ages, infectious diseases such as the plague were fought off with aromatic plants strewn across floors. Lavender water was available in the sixteenth century at the local apothecary. It was a time of alchemists embarking on mystical quests to turn base metals into gold, and for others to distil the quintessence from aromatic materials. Not until the end of the seventeenth century was the distinction between perfumes and aromatics made clear, with alchemy giving way to chemistry as more and more became understood about the nature of matter. The scientific revolution of the early nineteenth century saw the birth of the modern drug industry. During the twentieth century, essential oils were moved away from therapeutic use into perfumes, cosmetics and foodstuffs.