“There’s rosemary, that’s for remembrance. Pray you, love, remember.”

Hamlet, William Shakespeare

According to Greek mythology, Aphrodite emerged from the sea at her birth draped in rosemary.

Christian religion has integrated the plant into its stories. In one telling, Mary draped her blue cloak on a rosemary shrub with white flowers, turning the blossoms blue. The plant then became the rose of Mary.

Rosemary is deeply entwined in European culture. At funerals, mourners throw rosemary sprigs into the grave as a sign of remembrance for the dead. At weddings, brides wear rosemary in their hair as a sign of remembrance of the vows. Married couples may dip rosemary sprigs in their wine glasses before a toast. At some weddings, rosemary sprigs tied with beautiful ribbons are given to all of the guests as a sign of remembrance of their relationship to the couple.

Rosemary Aromatic Properties and Chemical Composition

The scent of rosemary oils varies substantially based on the chemotype of the source material, which is denoted with a ct after the plant and followed by the chemotype. Here, you would have Rosemary (Salvia rosmarinus) ct. cineole, Salvia rosmarinus ct. verbenone, and Salvia rosmarinus ct. camphor. Eden Botanicals notes that one should be wary of purchasing a rosemary oil without the chemotype listed as these are more likely to be adulterated. They recommend the cineole chemotype for most applications.

Eucalyptus, Herbal, Medicinal: The cineole chemotype contains 40-55% cineole (eucalyptol). This is a bracing and volatile compound that dominates the opening experience of the oil.

Piney: Next to cineole alpha- and beta-pinene make up 15-20% of the oil. This is bright, pine, citrus, lift without the camphor note from the cineole.

Sweet, woody, spicy: Once the initial blast of camphor and pine fades, rosemary has the most wonderful sweet/spicy woodiness that one wishes would last forever. Beta-caryophyllene (~5%) and borneol (5%) provide the woody note, with the borneol retaining the camphor note to a degree. Alpha-terpineol (2%) brings a floral note along with its woody, piney, terpenic effect.