Tea at Trianon: Science, History, and Incense

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Sunday, June 21, 2020

Science, History, and Incense

From Aleteia:

Even before Christianity, Israelites used incense in worship, as the Psalmist records, “Let my prayer be incense before you; my uplifted hands an evening offering” (Psalm 141:2).

Incense became a central part of the Church’s liturgy, not only because of its symbolism, but also on account of medicinal benefits. For example, in the famous Spanish church of Santiago de Compostela, medieval Christians created a large incense burner called the “Botafumeiro.” According to Atlas Obscura, “the incense … served to mask the smell of tired and unwashed pilgrims who crowded into the pews. It was also believed to have a preventative effect against [the] plague.” Recently various scientific studies have confirmed the surprisingly purifying effects of frankincense. One such study aimed to “test the effectiveness of their in situ application to cleanse microbially-contaminated air within the ambient of an investigated 17th-century church.”

The results of the study explained that, “The antimicrobial properties of essential oil derived from frankincense, a compound with well-known traditional use, showed that it possesses a clear potential as a natural antimicrobial agent. Moreover, the results suggest possible application of B. carteri EO vapor and incense fume as occasional air purifiers in sacral ambients, apart from daily church rituals.”

An article on the website Healthline claims “that burning myrrh and frankincense incense reduced airborne bacterial counts by 68%.”
Another study looked at frankincense essential oil and how it has anti-inflammation and anticancer effects.

Furthermore, it has been proven that burning frankincense even has the power to decrease depression. According to the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology, “Burning frankincense (resin from the Boswellia plant) activates poorly understood ion channels in the brain to alleviate anxiety or depression. This suggests that an entirely new class of depression and anxiety drugs might be right under our noses.” (Read more.)

julygirl said...: I recall the scene in the film about Columbus when he was walking down the aisle of the magnificent Santiago de Compostello the huge incense burner as it swung from side to side.; June 21, 2020 at 9:52:00 AM EDT
elena maria vidal said...: I LOVE that scene. And they still do that there.; June 21, 2020 at 2:24:00 PM EDT