http://www.library.upenn.edu/etext/c.../smith/french/
Text version online as part of an alchemy project: http://www.levity.com/alchemy/jfren_ar.html
Note: A period source. A sort of handbook for the home alchemist, French's work covers the basics of alchemy, including some of the more frightening and dangerous recipes (such as oil of mercury).
**Delightes for Ladies, Hugh Plat. 1594.
Note: There have been several versions of this but I haven't yet worked through my copy of it. However, here are a selection of rosewater recipes from it.
** The English Housewife: containing the inward and outward virtues which ought to be in a complete woman..., Gervase Markham. Chapter III: "Of distillations and their virtues, and of perfuming." first printed 1615. Published 1986 by McGill-Queen's University Press, Montreal; edited by Michael R. Best. ISBN: 0-7735-0582-2.
Note: the chapter includes a number of recipes, not all of them safe for modern use. Other mentions of waters are scattered throughout the text. The easiest to get near-period resource on sweet waters.
His Good Points of Husbandry, Thomas Tusser, "Of Herbs and Flowers." 1557. Published 1931 by Country Life Limited, London; edited by Dorothy Hartley.
Note: Primarily an agricultural text; cited here for list of 'herbs to still.'
The Elixirs of Nostradamus: Nostradamus' original recipes for elixirs, scented water, beauty potions and sweetmeats. Nostradamus. edited by Knut Boeser. (Wakefield, RI: Moyer Bell, 1996) ISBN: 1-55921-155-5
Note: Again, be aware that some of these ingredients are poisonous and may be deadly.
A Medieval Home Companion: Housekeeping in the fourteenth century. (from Le menagier de Paris) Trans. & edited by Tania Bayard. (NY: HarperCollins, 1991)
Note: only a few recipes for scents: cited here for the washwater recipe.
Nicholas Culpeper, The English Physitian, 1653. online through Yale Medical Library:
Note: though Culpeper's attitude toward astrology was extreme, it wasn't unorthodox. He also had access to the recipes of the Royal College of Physicians, so his recipes (included in this online version but omitted from most editions of Culpeper's Herbal), probably reflect practice in the first half of the 17th century.
Secondary sources
Perfume through the Ages, Roy Genders (New York, Putnam, 1972).
Note: Out of print, but often available in public libraries, this source has an overview of perfumes throughout the centuries. Use with caution: his recipes for medieval subtstances are usually the modern equivalent, and some of his interpretations are wrong.
**Eleanor Sinclair Rohde, The Scented Garden. (London: The Medici Society, 1931) ISBN: 0-85503-099-2
Note: not only includes an overview of a wide variety of scented garden flowers, but 1/3 of the book is a selection of recipes from various sources, many of the period or near period.
Stefan's Florilegium files on Perfumes: http://www.florilegium.org/files/PER...fumes-msg.html has some information on a few Arabic perfumes.
Rosetta Clarkson. Green Enchantment: the Golden Age of Herbs and Herbalists. (New York, Macmillan, 1940). ISBN: 0-02-009 461-2.
Notes: Has information on some period perfumes and medicinal uses of flowers in period.
**Rosetta Clarkson. The Magic of Herbs: A Chronicle of Herbs and Savory Seeds, Chapters XIV - XVI. (New York: Macmillan, 1939). ISBN: 0-02-030976-7.
Note: has two chapters on scented products, though primarily bags, powders and pomanders. Good for finding out what kind of scents people liked.
**R.J. Forbes. Studies in ancient technology, Vol. 3, section on "Perfumes". 2nd edition. (Leiden, E.J. Brill, 1964-).
Information about Egyptian, Greek and Roman use of perfumes and oils; note that if a particular text from antiquity was available in the Middle Ages and Renaissance, it probably influenced if not dictated what Medieval and Renaissance readers did.Excellent charts of what scents were used in different places, as well as good descriptions of scent extraction techniques used by the ancients.
Margaret B. Freeman, Herbs for the medieval household for cooking, healing, and divers uses. (NY:
Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1943). ISBN: 0-87099-776-9
Note: includes some period recipes, and information on period herbs.
Jacqueline Heriteau, Potpourris and Other Fragrant Delights. (NY: Penguin, 1973). ISBN: 0-14-046320-8
Note: has only limited period applicability but does include some period recipes.
Jeanne Rose, Herbs & Things: Jeanne Rose's Herbal, Chapters VIII, XVII, XIX. (Ne w York: Putnam, 1972) ISBN: 0-399-50944-5.
Note: though still in print and including a number of period recipes, this is sadly outdated and should be kept away from children (and impressionable adults!) due to some of the 70's-ish content and rather nasty illustrations.
Method Sources
Aromaweb. "Aromatic Blending." http://www.aromaweb.com/articles/aromaticblending.asp
** Perfumes, Splashes and Colognes, Nancy M. Booth. (Pownal, VT: Storey Publishing, 1997) ISBN: 0-88266-985-0
Note: this is the book to get on making scents. Great directions for making your own, recipes (unfortunately postperiod) for familar scents, wonderful reference on fragrances in general, good instruction and theory on blending scents.
** The complete book of Herbs and Spices, Sarah Garland, "History and Traditions," "Household herbs and spices," "Distillation techniques and herb scents." (New York: Reader's Digest, 1993). ISBN: 0-89577-499-2.
Note: discusses techniques and their history well and has information on a variety of herbs/spices.
Witch's Brew : Secrets of Scents, Morwyn. (Schiffer Publishing, 1997).
ISBN: 0924608196
Note: I'm including this book, despite its pagan/'magickal' purpose, for its good alternative explanation of how to blend scents in perfumes (she uses a different system than the usual top/middle/bottom note one). Her information on perfume history is mostly wrong, though.
Safety information
** The illustrated encyclopedia of essential oils: the complete guide to the use of oils in aromatherapy and herbalism, Julia Lawless. (NY: Barnes & Noble, 1995) ISBN: 1-56619-990-5
Note: THE Safety book I recommend on essential oils. Also gives background on, uses of, and types of extraction for each oil covered. Check oils here before using.
The Complete Medicinal Herbal, Penelope Ody. (NY: Dorling Kindersley, 1993)
Note: this the the major safety book I use when dealing with whole herbs. Very easy to use, and also gives directions for making various preparations.
The Essential Oils Book: Creating Personal Blends for Mind & Body, Colleen K. Dodt. (Pownal, VT: Storey, 1996) ISBN 0-88266-913-3.
Note: a good book to use if you are interested in aromatherapy applications.
-------------------------
Copyright 2000, Jennifer A. Heise. Contact me via email for permission to reprint: jahb@lehigh.edu Permission is explicitly granted for limited reproduction as a printed handout for classes in schools, herb society meetings, or classes or guild meetings in the Society for Creative Anachronism (except to corporate officers and board members of the SCA, Inc.), as long as I am notified and credited and the entire handout is used. [Jadwiga's herbs
homepage: http://www.lehigh.edu/~jahb/herbs/herbs.html
Text version online as part of an alchemy project: http://www.levity.com/alchemy/jfren_ar.html
Note: A period source. A sort of handbook for the home alchemist, French's work covers the basics of alchemy, including some of the more frightening and dangerous recipes (such as oil of mercury).
**Delightes for Ladies, Hugh Plat. 1594.
Note: There have been several versions of this but I haven't yet worked through my copy of it. However, here are a selection of rosewater recipes from it.
** The English Housewife: containing the inward and outward virtues which ought to be in a complete woman..., Gervase Markham. Chapter III: "Of distillations and their virtues, and of perfuming." first printed 1615. Published 1986 by McGill-Queen's University Press, Montreal; edited by Michael R. Best. ISBN: 0-7735-0582-2.
Note: the chapter includes a number of recipes, not all of them safe for modern use. Other mentions of waters are scattered throughout the text. The easiest to get near-period resource on sweet waters.
His Good Points of Husbandry, Thomas Tusser, "Of Herbs and Flowers." 1557. Published 1931 by Country Life Limited, London; edited by Dorothy Hartley.
Note: Primarily an agricultural text; cited here for list of 'herbs to still.'
The Elixirs of Nostradamus: Nostradamus' original recipes for elixirs, scented water, beauty potions and sweetmeats. Nostradamus. edited by Knut Boeser. (Wakefield, RI: Moyer Bell, 1996) ISBN: 1-55921-155-5
Note: Again, be aware that some of these ingredients are poisonous and may be deadly.
A Medieval Home Companion: Housekeeping in the fourteenth century. (from Le menagier de Paris) Trans. & edited by Tania Bayard. (NY: HarperCollins, 1991)
Note: only a few recipes for scents: cited here for the washwater recipe.
Nicholas Culpeper, The English Physitian, 1653. online through Yale Medical Library:
Note: though Culpeper's attitude toward astrology was extreme, it wasn't unorthodox. He also had access to the recipes of the Royal College of Physicians, so his recipes (included in this online version but omitted from most editions of Culpeper's Herbal), probably reflect practice in the first half of the 17th century.
Secondary sources
Perfume through the Ages, Roy Genders (New York, Putnam, 1972).
Note: Out of print, but often available in public libraries, this source has an overview of perfumes throughout the centuries. Use with caution: his recipes for medieval subtstances are usually the modern equivalent, and some of his interpretations are wrong.
**Eleanor Sinclair Rohde, The Scented Garden. (London: The Medici Society, 1931) ISBN: 0-85503-099-2
Note: not only includes an overview of a wide variety of scented garden flowers, but 1/3 of the book is a selection of recipes from various sources, many of the period or near period.
Stefan's Florilegium files on Perfumes: http://www.florilegium.org/files/PER...fumes-msg.html has some information on a few Arabic perfumes.
Rosetta Clarkson. Green Enchantment: the Golden Age of Herbs and Herbalists. (New York, Macmillan, 1940). ISBN: 0-02-009 461-2.
Notes: Has information on some period perfumes and medicinal uses of flowers in period.
**Rosetta Clarkson. The Magic of Herbs: A Chronicle of Herbs and Savory Seeds, Chapters XIV - XVI. (New York: Macmillan, 1939). ISBN: 0-02-030976-7.
Note: has two chapters on scented products, though primarily bags, powders and pomanders. Good for finding out what kind of scents people liked.
**R.J. Forbes. Studies in ancient technology, Vol. 3, section on "Perfumes". 2nd edition. (Leiden, E.J. Brill, 1964-).
Information about Egyptian, Greek and Roman use of perfumes and oils; note that if a particular text from antiquity was available in the Middle Ages and Renaissance, it probably influenced if not dictated what Medieval and Renaissance readers did.Excellent charts of what scents were used in different places, as well as good descriptions of scent extraction techniques used by the ancients.
Margaret B. Freeman, Herbs for the medieval household for cooking, healing, and divers uses. (NY:
Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1943). ISBN: 0-87099-776-9
Note: includes some period recipes, and information on period herbs.
Jacqueline Heriteau, Potpourris and Other Fragrant Delights. (NY: Penguin, 1973). ISBN: 0-14-046320-8
Note: has only limited period applicability but does include some period recipes.
Jeanne Rose, Herbs & Things: Jeanne Rose's Herbal, Chapters VIII, XVII, XIX. (Ne w York: Putnam, 1972) ISBN: 0-399-50944-5.
Note: though still in print and including a number of period recipes, this is sadly outdated and should be kept away from children (and impressionable adults!) due to some of the 70's-ish content and rather nasty illustrations.
Method Sources
Aromaweb. "Aromatic Blending." http://www.aromaweb.com/articles/aromaticblending.asp
** Perfumes, Splashes and Colognes, Nancy M. Booth. (Pownal, VT: Storey Publishing, 1997) ISBN: 0-88266-985-0
Note: this is the book to get on making scents. Great directions for making your own, recipes (unfortunately postperiod) for familar scents, wonderful reference on fragrances in general, good instruction and theory on blending scents.
** The complete book of Herbs and Spices, Sarah Garland, "History and Traditions," "Household herbs and spices," "Distillation techniques and herb scents." (New York: Reader's Digest, 1993). ISBN: 0-89577-499-2.
Note: discusses techniques and their history well and has information on a variety of herbs/spices.
Witch's Brew : Secrets of Scents, Morwyn. (Schiffer Publishing, 1997).
ISBN: 0924608196
Note: I'm including this book, despite its pagan/'magickal' purpose, for its good alternative explanation of how to blend scents in perfumes (she uses a different system than the usual top/middle/bottom note one). Her information on perfume history is mostly wrong, though.
Safety information
** The illustrated encyclopedia of essential oils: the complete guide to the use of oils in aromatherapy and herbalism, Julia Lawless. (NY: Barnes & Noble, 1995) ISBN: 1-56619-990-5
Note: THE Safety book I recommend on essential oils. Also gives background on, uses of, and types of extraction for each oil covered. Check oils here before using.
The Complete Medicinal Herbal, Penelope Ody. (NY: Dorling Kindersley, 1993)
Note: this the the major safety book I use when dealing with whole herbs. Very easy to use, and also gives directions for making various preparations.
The Essential Oils Book: Creating Personal Blends for Mind & Body, Colleen K. Dodt. (Pownal, VT: Storey, 1996) ISBN 0-88266-913-3.
Note: a good book to use if you are interested in aromatherapy applications.
-------------------------
Copyright 2000, Jennifer A. Heise. Contact me via email for permission to reprint: jahb@lehigh.edu Permission is explicitly granted for limited reproduction as a printed handout for classes in schools, herb society meetings, or classes or guild meetings in the Society for Creative Anachronism (except to corporate officers and board members of the SCA, Inc.), as long as I am notified and credited and the entire handout is used. [Jadwiga's herbs
homepage: http://www.lehigh.edu/~jahb/herbs/herbs.html
This is just something I had saved on my computer and thought you guys would like to see it.
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