I never knew about the hellebore before you posted this. I like the image of a flower dusted with snow. I looked up the folklore a little…the black hellebore, aka the Christmas Rose, “sprouted in the snow from the tears of a young girl who had no gift to give the Christ child in Bethlehem.” And it was historically used to cure the madness inflicted by Dionysus and to summon demons.
It is toxic and can lead to a slow death. Historians believed Alexander the Great was taking it as a medicine, but an overdose killed him. It was used for chemical warfare by the Greeks during the Siege of Kirrha. They poisoned Kirrha’s water supply, rendering them too sick to defend their city.
Thanks for the history, I knew hellebore was poisonous, but not that it was used for chemical warfare and Alexander the Great. Amazing how a ‘just a plant’ can change the course of history. I wonder which plants have had the most effect on humans? Besides food and those that alter consciousness, what else? Maybe some research in is order…..
Rainyleaf 
I never knew about the hellebore before you posted this. I like the image of a flower dusted with snow. I looked up the folklore a little…the black hellebore, aka the Christmas Rose, “sprouted in the snow from the tears of a young girl who had no gift to give the Christ child in Bethlehem.” And it was historically used to cure the madness inflicted by Dionysus and to summon demons.
It is toxic and can lead to a slow death. Historians believed Alexander the Great was taking it as a medicine, but an overdose killed him. It was used for chemical warfare by the Greeks during the Siege of Kirrha. They poisoned Kirrha’s water supply, rendering them too sick to defend their city.
I am enjoying your blog so far! Keep writing.
Thanks for the history, I knew hellebore was poisonous, but not that it was used for chemical warfare and Alexander the Great. Amazing how a ‘just a plant’ can change the course of history. I wonder which plants have had the most effect on humans? Besides food and those that alter consciousness, what else? Maybe some research in is order…..