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Ancient Roman Myth: Where Does Dragon's Blood Come From?
Dragon's blood is a bright red resin that comes from a variety of plant genera, including Calamus spp. (formerly known as Daemonorops), Croton, Dracaena, and Pterocarpus. Since ancient times, this resin has been widely used as varnish, medicine, fragrance, pigment and dye. In ancient times, however, there was considerable myth and confusion regarding the origin and identity of dragon’s blood.
Some medieval encyclopedias even claimed that the source of dragon's blood was the actual blood of elephants and dragons that died in battle.
The ancients in the Roman period had a vague understanding of the true origin of dragon's blood, which led to the source of dragon's blood being often confused with other sulfur compounds such as cinnabar. In ancient China, people did not make a clear distinction between dragon's blood from different plants, and both resins were simply called "dragon's blood." Resin extracted from Calamus is still widely sold today and is the most common commercial product available today, usually in the form of large resin pellets.
While the same resin, from different species and from different continents, is called "dragon's blood," there are significant differences in its purity, appearance, and chemical properties. Dragon's blood, collected by explorers in the Canary Islands in the 15th century, came primarily from Dracaena draco, a plant whose resin oozes from injured trunks or branches. At the same time, Dracaena cinnabari from the island of Socotra was collected in a similar manner and traded to ancient Europe via the Spice Route.
The resin secretions from the dragon's blood tree are widely used in local folk remedies and are believed to have healing and antioxidant properties.
The colour of dragon's blood was of great significance in ancient art, with chemist George Field describing it as "a warm, translucent, slightly dull red, which deepens when impurities are present and changes colour when exposed to the light." dark". When using dragon's blood, the Romans particularly prized the resin from D. cinnabari, which they believed could be used as a dye, a pigment for painting, and a remedy for respiratory and digestive problems.
Early Greek texts, such as the works of Dioscorides, also described the medicinal value of dragon's blood. The resin was still widely used in ritual magic and alchemy until the Middle Ages. Italian 18th-century violin makers used dragon’s blood as a varnish, and it even appeared in toothpaste recipes of the time.
In China, dragon's blood resin is often used as a red wood lacquer, especially on writing paper for weddings and New Year celebrations.
Today, dragon's blood is still widely used. In addition to being a pigment, it is still used in violin varnish, photography and sculpture, medicine, spice resin and body oil. In addition, resins from Daemonorops draco also show potential for use in the food and pharmaceutical industries.
The safety of dragon's blood has been studied, starting with a 2018 pathology study of resin derived from Dracaena cinnabari, which found it to be well tolerated at certain doses.
However, despite its long history and wide range of uses, research into all its possible properties and uses is still ongoing, so the ancient myths about dragon's blood and its modern manifestations are still worthy of our deep thought and exploration. What little-known secrets are hidden behind the complicated history of this ancient resin?
