Roses Trivia, Meanings, and Myths

• The real beauty in roses is the story behind them. For centuries, roses have inspired love and brought beauty to those who have received them. In fact, the rose's rich heritage dates back thousands of years.



• People have been passionate about roses since the beginning of time. It is said that the floors of Cleopatra's palace were carpeted with delicate rose petals, and that the wise and knowing Confucius had a 600 book library specifically on how to care for roses.



• Wherefore art thou rose? In the readings of Shakespeare, of course. He refers to roses more than 50 times throughout his writings.



• One thousand years old. That's the age the world's oldest living rose bush is thought to be. Today, it continues to flourish on the wall of the Hildesheim Cathedral in Germany.



• Why white roses are so special is no mystery -- it's a myth. Perhaps it started with the Romans, who believed white roses grew where the tears of Venus fell as she mourned the loss of her beloved Adonis.



• Myth also has it that Venus' son Cupid accidentally shot arrows into the rose garden when a bee stung him, and it was the "sting" of the arrows that caused the roses to grow thorns. And, when Venus walked through the garden and pricked her foot on a thorn, it was the droplets of her blood which turned the roses red.



• It's offical -- the rose is New York's state flower.



• The rose is a legend of its own. The story goes that during the Roman empire, there was an incredibly beautiful maiden named Rhodanthe. Her beauty drew many zealous suitors who pursued her relentlessly. Exhausted by their pursuit, Rhodanthe was forced to take refuge from her suitors in the temple of her friend Diana. Unfortunately, Diana became jealous. And, when the suitors broke down her temple gates to get near their beloved Rhodanthe, she also became angry, turning Rhodanthe into a rose and her suitors into thorns.



• Dolly Parton may be known for her music and theme park. But, rose lovers know her for the orange / red variety bearing her name.



• A rose by any other name... According to Greek Mythology, it was Aphrodite who gave the rose its name.



• While the rose may bear no fruit, the rose hips (the part left on the plant after a rose is done blooming) contain more Vitamin C than almost any other fruit or vegetable.



• The rose is a symbol of the times. In fact, it's the official National Floral Emblem of the United States, where June is National Rose Month.



• Leave it to the romantic French to be the ones to first deliver roses. It was in the seventeenth century that French explorer Samuel deChamplain brought the first cultivated roses to North America.



• Roses are truly ageless. Recently, archaeologists discovered the fossilized remains of wild roses over 40 million years old.



• The people of ancient Greece used roses to accessorize. On festive occasions, they would adorn themselves with garlands of roses and splash themselves with scented oil.



• Napoleon's wife Josephine so adored roses, she grew more than 250 varieties.