Poppies

This week I will be discussing the Poppy, the quote for this week is from The Wicked Witch of the West in the Wizard of Oz movie (1939) “And now my beauties, something with poison in it I think, with poison in it, but attractive to the eye and soothing to the smell…...poppies, poppies, poppies will put them to sleep.” I will also be adding in the ‘In Flanders Fields’ later in the blog.

The Poppy flower has both many different symbolisms and meanings across the ages and cultures with various significance on colours and context.

The Poppy has had a reincarnation in terms of meaning and symbolism, Poppies were the symbol for sleepiness, Hypnos, the Greek god of sleep, was said to live in a cave full of poppies and is often shown as a young, gentle man holding a poppy stem.  The Ancient Greeks viewed poppies as a sign of death and reincarnation with Persephone, Queen of the Underworld, often shown with motifs of poppy heads. The Poppy is also linked to Persephone’s mother, Demeter, the goddess of agriculture, fertility and harvest. The Greek gods gave Demeter poppies to help her sleep as she was so upset that her daughter Persephone had been abducted by Hades, the god of the underworld. The poppy is also associated with Morpheus, the Greek god of sleep and dreams, son of Hypnos, the modern-day drug morphine which is derived from poppies is named after this Greek god.

 The Ancient Greeks also created a mixture called Theriac which was considered a cure-all and could treat all manners of complaints, it had Opium mixed with things like honey and cinnamon, Theriac is where we get the modern word ‘treacle’.

Fossils recorded seeds from the Poppy found in the mediterranean, dating back to early Neolithic Age, seeds have also been found in man’s teeth from this time. Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphic writings suggest that opium Poppy was used as a method of pain relief in childbirth. Poppies were also seen in Ebers Papyrus, a medical text from 1550 BCE to soothe infants.

The poppy flower was domesticated by the indigenous people of Western and Central Europe between 6,000 and 3,500 BC; however, the original roots may come from Sumaira as this is where the first use of opium was recognised.

The poppy has a huge variety of colours; red, white, yellow, pink, salmon, blue, black and lilac. The red Poppy being readily available and the blue being the rarest to find.

Poppies have also been used an inspiration for art; The Orientalist painters of the nineteenth century associated the poppy with dreaminess and oblivion because of its opiate qualities. This can be seen in paintings like: In the Bey’s Garden by John Frederick Lewis, Poppies by Eugene Delacroix and The Oriental Women by Leon Francois Comerre. The artist Claude Monet, famously depicting them in his painting “Poppy Field.” This artwork showcases a field of wild red Poppies in the French countryside and remains one of his most beloved pieces.

The common symbolism in modern age for the red Poppy is of sacrifice and remembrance, the link between the two can be credited to the famous war poem “In Flanders Field” by Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, where the sight of the Poppies growing atop of the graves of the fallen soldiers in WW1 immortalised both the poem and the symbolism the poppy would forever have in the eyes of western culture with the Poppy still being worn today to remember the fallen man of the past and the bravery of the soldiers today.

In Flanders Fields

by John McCrae

In Flanders' Fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses, row on row,

     That mark our place: and in the sky

     The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,

     Loved and were loved, and now we lie,

          In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:

To you from failing hands we throw

     The torch; be yours to hold it high.

     If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow

          In Flanders fields.

Other Poppy colours also have an association with the wars, the white Poppy was given as a symbol of peace and non-violence, they were first sold in 1933 by member of the women’s Cooperative Guild, with the message of ‘never again’ to show mourning of loss loved ones. The black Poppies are used to remember the substantial, and often overlooked, military and civilian contributions of Black, African, Caribbean, and Indigenous communities to war efforts through the centuries. A purple Poppy is a symbol of remembrance worn to honour the animals that served and died as victims of war.

The purple Poppy is also linked with spirituality and mindfulness, they symbolise spiritual awakening and transformation. The orange Poppy’s meaning is health, joy and success. The blue Poppy means creativity and inspiration, the pink is a symbol of beauty, peace and love. The yellow is renewal and optimism.

Facts about Poppies

The Poppy is the birth flower of August alongside the Gladiolus

Despite their tiny size, Poppy seeds pack a punch in flavour and are commonly used in baking. It takes about 1 million poppy seeds to make a single pound!

The California poppy (Eschscholzia Californica) is the state flower of California. Its bright orange petals have made it a symbol of the Golden State, celebrated annually on April 6th, known as California Poppy Day.

Thank for reading, see you next week.

Sources

Poppy Flower: Meaning, Types, and Symbolism - An iconic and richly historic flower whose mere being is enigmatic. Get to know more about poppies. - By: BRIAN OKINDA

Ruth Goudy - The Flower Writer - Symbolism of the Poppy

British legion

The Bouqs – Fresh Trimmings - Poppy Flower Meaning & Symbolism

Flowers and Their Meaning – Karen Azoulay

The healing Power of Flowers – Claire Bowen and Eva Nemeth

The myths, magic and language of flowers – Floriography – Sally Coulthard