Primula in Mythology

Hey dear community, I hope you all had a pleasant start to the new year and were able to make one or the other positive experiences today! When I was outside today, I took pictures of a flower and would like to specifically discuss the mythology behind it in this post.

Perfect to the new year, I was also able to find one of the first flowering plants this year and the primrose can be seen here, and the genus is known under the scientific name Primula. The name means as much as first and is derived from the Latin word Primus and this is really very suitable for an early bloomer which is also very interesting from an ecological point of view and is a great source of food for the first insects. The appearance can remind something of a keychain and in Norse mythology it has a special high priority and they were especially protected by the mythical creatures elves and mermaids because, according to legends, this is the key to hidden treasures or secrets and especially yellow primroses could open the way to hidden gold. Here, the legends vary and it is often said that there could be a chest full of gold under the flower, but you had to be very careful because if you took the treasure it could happen that you are persecuted by a being and in general Primula was often revered as a magical plant and numerous fairy tales and poems have been created about it. In the Middle Ages, it was also believed that it could be the key to the sky and even then it was a well-known symbol of the beginning of spring and appears again and again in old writings. Also in the Norse mythology it is considered a sign of the beginning of spring and therefore also associated with fertility or the goddess Freya and here there is also the legend that you can enter the area of her with the help of a primrose and in the context of the search for the hidden things or gold, it can also be associated with the old alchemists who had similar goals.

The primrose is available in numerous different colors such as red, yellow, white or violet and just as diverse is the effect and this was already very appreciated by the ancient Celts when they noticed that you can make an intoxicating magic potion from it which was used especially for festivities and it is also a great medicinal plant Which can also help to open the third eye or pineal gland. As if it already has a long history behind it and has been used for different types of diseases and even today it is often used for these purposes, however, I would like to mention, as always that in case of illness, you always have to ask your doctor or pharmacist about the right medicine or application to avoid complications! About the medical effect, there is also a legend from ancient Greece and when they were looking for a miracle cure for diseases, they also come across this flower and thought that this was a gift from the gods and was known to them under the name Dodecatheon and also in ancient Rome it was already appreciated and mentioned by the scholar Pliny the elder. Also from a general symbolic point of view, the primrose is also often regarded as a sign of youth, hope or protection and also in art this flower can be found from time to time in some works of art, also the well-known painter Albrecht Dürer (1471 - 1528) as well as many other famous artists have used this flower as a motif.

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you could learn something new about mythology! I captured these pictures with my Camera Sony Alpha 6000 plus 55-210 mm lens!