Circe in Greek mythology is a daughter of the sun god Helios and Oceanid nymph Perse and the sister of the king of Colchis – Aeetes. Circe, like Medea and Hecate, was known of her vast knowledge of potions and herbs. It is believed that she mastered witchcraft at the Temple of Helios in Colchis and according to Homer, she was living on the island of Aeaea, where Helios took her with his chariot.

After a long journey overseas, Odysseus visited her island with his companions. Circe turned the sailors, who got off the ship to explore the island, into pigs. According to one version, Circe wanted Odysseus to become her husband and thus, she gave the sailors a tincture

of barley, cheese, honey in Pramnian wine, also mixed with magic medicine which would made them forget about the homeland. However, Hermes gave Odysseus a plant called Molly, to protect him against Circe’s magic and once Circe realized that she could not put a spell on Odysseus, she offered him to stay with her on this island.

According to Hesiod, Circe had sons from Odysseus: Agrius, Latinus (ancestor of Latins) and Telegon, who later became ruler of the Etruscans. There was a temple named after him on the Mountain of Circe in Italy, where the cup of Odysseus is believed to have been kept. Some sources also indicate the existence of Circe Mountain in Colchis.

The ability of Circe to turn humans into animals is also found in the story of the Italian king Picus, who Circe turned into a woodpecker. There are also other stories how Circe fell in love with the sea god Glaucus, who preferred a nymph over her. Then Circe poisoned the water where her rival was swimming and turned her into a horrible monster.

Many works of literature have been created on the theme of Circe, many authors were writing about her, such as: Aeschylus, Ovid, Plutarch, Giovanni Boccaccio, Lope de Vega, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Edmund Spencer, Niccolo Machiavelli, Henri La Fontaine, Julio Cortasar, James Joyce and others.

Circe’s personality is particularly diverse in painting: She is portrayed as a counsellor, sometimes as a goddess, sensual witch and sometimes as a sexual woman. There are many artworks created about her: Annibale Carracci’s fresco “Ulysses and Circe”, Dosso Dossi’s “Circe and her lovers”, John Collier’s “Circe”, Louis Chalon’s “Circe” as a daughter of the sun and many others. Several paintings are also well-known by English painter John William Waterhouse: “Circe Offering the Cup to Ulysses”; “Circe” (according to Ovid’s “Metamorphoses”) and “The Magician”.

Later in the 18th century, it became fashionable to paint portraits of famous women in the form of Circe. Many operas and musical compositions were written about her. In 1963, the American choreographer Martha Graham staged the ballet called “Circe”, which depicted the ongoing psychological battle with animal instinct.

The asteroid, discovered by astronomers in 1855, was named after Circe.

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In the story the Odyssey, Hermes gave this herb to Odysseus to protect him from Circe’s wizardry when he went to her palace to rescue his friends. Homer and Ovid describe Moly by saying: “The root was black, while the flower was as white as milk”.

According to the “New History” of Ptolemy Hephaestion, the plant grew from the blood of the Giant Picolous killed on Circe’s island, by Helios. In this description the flower was white and a derivation of the name was given, from the “hard” (Greek malos) combat with the Giant.

There is a lot of controversy among scientists about the identification of this plant, there are many opinions, however the issue is not solved, some believe that Homer read the name of this magical plant in ancient Egyptian papyrus and the name may be derived from Phoenician or Egyptian, but it is now almost impossible to identify.

Medical historians have speculated that the transformation to pigs (described by Homer) was not intended literally but refers to anticholinergic intoxication. Symptoms include amnesia,

hallucinations and delusions. This description of “moly” fits the snowdrop, a flower of the region that contains Galantamine, which is an anticholinesterase and can therefore counteract anticholinergics.

Circaea Lutetiana is a perennial herbaceous plant with opposite, simple leaves, on slender, green stems. It grows 20 cm to 60 cm, rarely up to 75 centimetres high. The flowers are white, born from June till August. The small pear-shaped fruit has sharp buds that allow it to attach to different surfaces. The plant grows in the forest, on the banks of rivers, loves shade and moist loamy soil.

It is used in medicine to treat wounds, tinctures are drunk in the form of tea, and the roots are used to make dyestuff.

The genus name comes from the enchantress Circe of Greek mythology and the specific designation is derived from Lutetia, the Latin name for Paris, which was sometimes referred to as the “Witch City”.

Colchicum – Botanically its name is Utsuna. It is called Tavniora in Lechkhumi, Satovlia in Guria and Adjara, the “Lone flower” in Imereti, “the snow herald” and “the snow mother” in Racha, “Matiria Kvarakunchkha” in Megrelian.

Colchicum (Utsuna) is short-stemmed and globular grass, perennial herbaceous plants of the lily family, have large and variegated flowers, some species bloom in late autumn, and bear fruit next spring. Plants in this genus contain toxic amounts of the alkaloid colchicine which is used pharmaceutically to treat gout, neuralgia and rheumatism.

Seeds and globules contain alkaloids, of which colchicine is used in genetics and selection to obtain polyploids, and in medicine to treat gout, Kolkhamian (Omain) – to treat blood diseases

Lilium  is a genus of herbaceous flowering plants growing from bulbs, all with large prominent flowers. Most species are native to the temperate northern hemisphere. Eight species grow in Georgia, most of which are endemic to the Caucasus (Lat.  Lilium caucasicum, Lilium Georgicum, Lilium Kesselringianum, etc.). They are used in gardens and parks for decorative purposes. They have large white, yellow or orange flowers, tiled on the bulb. They grow in meadows, woodlands, subalpine meadows, in high grasslands. Many ornamental varieties of Liliums are bred. In the first year of vegetation, the plant usually does not flower, but makes a small bulb in the ground, the size of which gradually increases in the following years. Only when a certain amount of stock is reached in the bulb, the plant does begin to flower and then bloom every year.

The roots and bulb of the Lilium were used for medicinal purposes, its tincture was used for diseases of the abdomen, fevers, as well as for burns and wounds, the tincture was also given to women in labour.

Different species and colours have different symbolic meanings, Lilies commonly grow in white, yellow, pink, red and orange.

White lilies symbolize purity and virtue.

Pink lilies symbolize prosperity and abundance.

Red lilies symbolize love and passion.

Orange lilies symbolize pride and wealth, it gives confidence and energy , full positivity and warmth, orange lilies are the perfect flowers to send when you want to say well done on a new job, new home or personal achievement.

Yellow lilies symbolize thankfulness, joy, friendship and desire for enjoyment. Yellow lilies make great ‘thank you’ flowers, their sunny colour awakens feelings of happiness and smile.

According to Greek mythology, the lily is considered a symbol of motherhood and rebirth, as it was believed that this flower originated from the milk of Zeus’ wife – Hera. According to the myth, Zeus wanted Hera to feed the baby Heracles with her milk, but since Heracles was born from another woman, Hera did not agree to this, at which point her milk drops spilled on the ground and they turned into lilies. The Greeks also considered it a symbol of sexuality.

According to Roman legend, when the love goddess Venus was born from the foam of the sea and saw a lily, she envied the beauty of the flower and gave it an extra elongated bud in the middle, in the hope that the flower would become less attractive. Thus for the Romans it was considered a symbol of love and passion, which Venus itself symbolized.

Assyrians and Babylonians also associated lilies with the goddess of fertility, Ishtar.

In the Christian religion, the lily is associated with the Virgin Mary – the white lily is called the flower of Mary and is often depicted in art as its symbol.

Lily is also a biblical term, found in the “Old Testament”, especially often in King Solomon’s “Praise”. In the reign of King David, a musical instrument in the shape of this flower was made, which the Jews called “lily”.

Jesus Christ also was talking about this flower: “See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these” (Bible Gateway Matthew 6: 28-29)

William Blake, an influential Romantic poet, wrote a poem entitled “The Lily” that encompasses its sweet and innocent beauty.

Fleur-de-Lis, a portrayal of a three-petal lily in France, represents prosperity and royalty.

Mandragora is a perennial herbaceous plant,  its genus belonging to the nightshade family. Has large (80 cm long and 60 cm wide) leaves, greenish-white, blue or violet flowers and large orange or yellow berries fruit.

The large straight roots of the Mandragora sometimes resemble the human body and were therefore attributed to its magical power, many even thinking that the root screams when it is torn from the ground. In ancient times, protective amulets were made from the root, and it was believed that this mascot could cure everything, bring victory in battle, and also they boiled a love tincture from it, which cured infertility.

In German mythology, the word ‘Mandragora’ referred to a dwarf creature with a human face that could bring success and wealth to its owner.

Mandragora root was also used as a potent hallucinogen. The plant is often referred to in medieval magic recipes as one of the main ingredients in “Flying Ointment” or “Witch Tincture”.

The roots that most closely resembled to the human body were most valued, especially if it had a sex distinctive mark, as it was accepted to divide the Mandragora into female and male sex.

From ancient Egyptian legends, Mandragoras have been credited with the magical power of fertility and love. It is first mentioned in Babylonian and Assyrian inscriptions, as well as in the Old Testament. In Egypt its fruit was mixed with food as the nectar of love, while the Greeks considered it a plant of love.