When we talk about roses, we’re usually referring to the plants within the genus Rosa, a group of woody perennial flowering plants that can grow as self-supporting shrubs, climbers, or trailers. Ornamental roses have been cultivated by gardeners for millennia, resulting in the thousands of varieties we see across the world today. Our love affair with the rose runs so deep it’s difficult to imagine a plant heavier in symbolism and myth.
With both delicate petals and sharp, defensive thorns, perhaps it’s the natural duality of the rose that makes it the perfect vehicle for symbolic meaning. We may use a rose to express our love or to suppress information: keeping something ‘sub rosa’ (a Latin proverb meaning ‘beneath the roses’). These two opposing meanings seem to stem from the same source, the Greek goddess of love, Aphrodite. Her birth is often depicted with roses and many of the myths surrounding her include rose motifs, explaining the rose’s association with romance that has carried on in the modern-day.
One lesser-known myth tells that Aphrodite’s son, Eros, presented the god of silence, Harpocrates, with a rose to ensure Aphrodite’s romantic affairs were kept secret. The rose thus became a symbol of silence and secrecy in ancient Greece and Rome. A rose would even be hung from the ceilings of ancient Roman council chambers so that all present beneath the rose (‘sub rosa’) were pledged to keep discussions held in the room a secret. This tradition continued and it became common across Europe in the Middle Ages to decorate the ceiling of political chambers and Christian confessional booths with carvings of roses. If you spot a rose motif in a historical building in Britain, however, it’s more likely to be the Tudor rose. An emblem that the Tudor family adopted to represent the union of the house of York (represented by a white rose) and the house of Lancaster (represented by a red rose).
As well as using them as a symbol, roses are also commonly harvested for consumption. Rose water can be made by steeping the petals in hot water and is a common ingredient in cosmetics and often features as the main flavour in sweets such as baklava or Turkish delight. The Damask rose can also be ground into a powder for flavouring meat on its own or as an ingredient in common spice mixtures such as ras-el-hanout or harissa.
With their associations of beauty, love and secrecy, it’s no surprise that roses have been adorning our homes and public spaces for centuries. So next time you’re picking out a bunch of flowers for a loved one, admiring the artwork of your nearest church or even taking a stroll through our Gardens, you’ll have an even better insight of these wonderful plants.