Cistus L

Ladanía–

I want to climb a mountain now, let my mind be free! Let the barking of the sheepdog begin to flourish
and the oil to sweat and the partridge flutters, the log cackles! N. Kazantzakis, Odyssey RAPSODY E’

The genus Cistus comprises approximately 25 species of perennial shrubs endemic to the entire Mediterranean basin, from Morocco to the Middle East.

The impressive flowers have five petals that vary in color and can range from white to dark pink.All species love rocky, sunny places and often cover large areas, such as scrubland and dry grasslands on hillsides, especially in areas that have been destroyed by fire. This is because the germination of seeds in the soil is accelerated by the high temperatures of the fire.

The name of the genus comes from the ancient Greek word kisthos, meaning basket or panier, and most common Greek names reflect the continuity of the language. Kistos, kisari, akisaros or akesaros, kisthos, xistaria, kounoukla, ladania.

Four main species are endemic to Greece, including the famous cistus incanus or cistus creticus, Cretan cistus, with larger flowers and dark pink petals that look wrinkled. The species is abundant in Crete and Cyprus, and has been well known since ancient times thanks to ladano (ancient Greek, ledano), an aromatic resin secreted from its leaves that has excellent medicinal properties. It is a hard black resin with a strong smell that has been used throughout history to produce essential oil, as a stabilizer in perfumes or as incense, and in ointments for skin conditions (boils, abscesses, etc.). Modern research confirms that ladano contains substances that have bacteriogenic and microbicidal action*.

In ancient times, ladano was collected from the beards of goats, to which it stuck while they were grazing.

In Herodotus we read: The Arabs call it ladano... For it is most fragrant, being found in the wool of goats and sheep, like a balm from the substance. It is useful in many perfumes, and the Arabs especially use it in incense’ (Thaleia).

Dioscorides describes another method of collecting labdanum, or ledum as he calls it, “Some tie ropes to the bushes and, after scraping off the fat that has formed on them, they reshape them.”.

In Crete, this method of harvesting is still used today: the “ladanari,” as the collectors of labdanum or aladanum are called, use a special tool called a ladanistiri or argasisti. This is a pole about 1 meter long with a vertical bow at the end, to which thin, long strips of leather were tied in the past, while today they have been replaced by plastic cylindrical strips 60-70 cm long.

They choose the warm midday hours when resin secretion is highest and rub the bushes with the ladanistiri. The resin sticks to the strips, which are then spread out in the sun, where the resin softens considerably and is removed with special scrapers. This method is considered to produce a high-quality product. Its commercial exploitation has been an important and, in the past, primary source of income for the residents of the community of Sissos Mylopotamos in Rethymno.
The essential oil of labdanum, extracted from either the resin or the leaves and flowers of the plant, is used in aromatherapy to bring back memories of the past and awaken the unconscious. Its incense has a similar effect. There is an “ancient feeling” from the past and the collective unconscious.

Four species of the family grow wild on Kythira:
Cistus creticus L.
Cistus salvifolius L.
Cistus parviflorus L.
Cistus monspeliensis L.
When the whole island bursts into color in spring, the akesaros are the stars of the show.

*Caution! Not to be confused with laudanum, which is a derivative of opium with strong analgesic properties.