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Aromatherapy officially earned its name from Rene-Maurice Gattefosse in the early 1900s. Now considered the father of aromatherapy, Gattefosse was a little-known chemist at the time. He used lavender essence to hasten the healing of wounds he sustained in a lab explosion, and this led to a deep fascination with essential oils.
Pop your favorite scent in your electric essential oil diffuser because we’re about to venture beyond Gattefosse and his explosive experiments, diving into the centuries that stretch out behind him to unearth the fascinating unofficial history of aromatherapy.
1. The wisdom of Australian Aboriginals
From the 1772 logs of Captain James Cook, we’ve been able to gather that he and his men borrowed traditions from the first people of Australia. Cook observed that the Bundjalung people used the oil from Melaleuca Alternifolia (tea tree oil) to treat all sorts of ailments. They would crush the leaves to extract the oil. Cook and his crew followed suit, using tea tree oil to treat wounds, respiratory issues, and even scurvy.
2. An ancient Chinese art
It’s hard to say where aromatherapy was first practiced. However, the ancient Chinese and Egyptians both appear to have been using some form of aromatherapy as many as 6,000 years ago.
In China, the oldest medical book still intact today is filled with cures and treatments derived from aromatic herbs. Written by Shen Nung, the ancient tome has been dated at around 2,700 BCE.
3. Aromatherapy connects us to ancient Egypt
Without aromatherapy, it’s hard to say how much of ancient Egyptian culture we’d be able to decipher. Cedar oil has a preservative effect, and it played a central role in the mummification process. Cedarwood oil was also used on papyrus scrolls, preserving texts that have been central to our ability to decipher ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics.
4. Aromatherapy vs the Dark Ages
The use of essential oils wasn’t exactly seen as witchery in the Dark Ages (the 5th to the 10th Centuries AD), but it was an attempt to cure illnesses through something other than prayer. Since the Catholic Church’s stance back then was that bodily afflictions were a form of divine punishment, only through prayer could one be cured in a righteous way.
The ingredients and instruments used to create essential oils were banned, and you would not want to be on the receiving end of the grotesque medieval punishments dished out for practicing anything like aromatherapy.
5. The rise of the quacks
By the 12th Century AD, aromatherapy was back and bigger than ever. Quack doctors were obsessed with oils and aromatic plant extracts. Many a “curative” tincture was created from oils of wormwood, mint, pennyroyal, rosemary, sage, thyme, lavender, and more. Practitioners out for a quick buck would claim they had the miracle cure for everything from gout to the plague.
6. A symbol of status
By the 18th and 19th centuries, essential oils were loved more for their dazzling scents than their potential to heal. Perfumes created from essential oils were a symbol of affluence and nobility. People applied it liberally to ensure everyone knew how sophisticated they were.
Clothing, hair, and accessories were all doused in scented oils, and bodies were bathed in perfumed waters. Special cases (nécessaires de voyage) were invented to safely house a variety of scents during travel.
Aromatherapy has come a long way over the many centuries it has been with us. It has had many triumphs and many controversies, but with such a long history, one thing is clear – aromatherapy will be with us for many years to come.
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