LAVENDER. 301 



Asarum by the Romans, on account of its 

 not being used in garlands or chaplets : the 

 leaves, says Pliny, were too small and brittle 

 to be woven into coronets. 



It has often been asserted, that the spike- 

 nard ointment of the ancients was made from 

 the root of the Valeriana Jatamansi, which is 

 found growing only in India ; but this seems 

 highly improbable, as the scent of this root 

 differs very widely from our idea of agreeable 

 perfumes ; and we may presume, that the 

 opinions of the Romans at the commence- 

 ment of the Christian era, with respect to 

 odours, were similar to our own ; as we find, 

 besides the spikenard, they extracted their 

 favourite odours from roses, myrtle, violets, 

 marjoram, lilies, orris-root, and jonquils, &c, 

 to which they often added sweet spices and 

 aromatic gums. 



The late Sir William Jones was of opinion, 

 that this celebrated ointment was procured 

 from the root of the Valerian of Nepal ; and 

 on this authority, Mr. Lambert tells us in his 

 illustration of the genus Cinchona, that the 

 Valeriana Jatamansi " is identical with the 

 spikenard of the ancients :" notwithstanding 

 the doubts expressed by Dr. Francis Hamil- 

 ton, in his account of Nepal, where he says. 



