Maurice Godefridi

· 03 Jan 2021

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The profession herbalist

Photo in the garden of Maurice year 1990. Land conquered on the Belgian Railways. I explain to a bed with wild thyme species. Thyme has been used as a medicine from time immemorial. The Greek thumos, olfactory, refers not only to the aroma of this plant, but also to the embalming of corpses in ancient Carthage. The essential oil was used not only for perfuming, but also for its disinfectant and preservative effect.

But thumos can also mean courage, the stimulating effect of thyme has always been known. Roman soldiers already used thyme baths to go to war. A soup recipe from 1663 mentioned the use of thyme and beer to overcome shyness. A little courage (hubris?) was also necessary to establish a herbal school more than 30 years ago, and restore the word and profession “herbalist”. Herbalist is one of the oldest professions in the world. The second oldest after... you know... I say mockery.

#herborist #opleiding #mauricegodefridi #tijm