Some last minute notes on mint...

I realized that I had forgotten to mention a few more interesting tidbits about mint that I had found.

Just as I had mentioned before the burning of rosemary in funeral pyres, mint was also burned for its virtues that the Greeks thought to be associated with the afterlife. In fact, the Greeks who belonged to the cult of Demeter and Persephone (goddesses of the harvest and underworld, respectively) participated in a religious "journey" called the Eleusinian Mysteries. This journey would bring them closer to the gods and reward them greatly in the afterlife. A key part of this journey was a sacred fasting, followed by consumption of a drink called kykeon. Kykeon consisted of mint, barley and water and when drunk often times gave people visions of their afterlife. Nowadays many believe that this is because the people were consuming barley that had been parasitized by ergot, which caused a psychodelic effect.

In first aid, menthol is used in "mineral ice" when ice cannot be obtained readily. And lastly, menthol is used in many perfumes to bring out floral hints, especially with rose perfumes! And that's it for mint! On to thyme!