Damask rose is very skin enhancing and rejuvenating. In the world of essential oils, damask rose benefits skin so much it’s revered the queen of all essential oils. Damask rose oil is unrivaled in both fragrance and healing properties. PHYTO5 takes advantage of these damask rose benefits and formulates it as floral water or essential oil in many skincare products:
Ancient Egyptians knew about damask rose benefits for beauty.
Deriving its name from Damascus, Syria, this rose didn’t originate there. Many believe the damask rose originated in Asia, but the damask rose goes back all the way to ancient Egypt.
The ancients found damask rose benefits remarkable for health but the flower was somewhat scarce. So the damask rose became highly prized in ancient times and still is today.
Archeologists have discovered the damask rose in Egyptian tombs. Historians believe damask rose entered Egyptian culture during the reign of Ramses the Great (1279-1213 BCE).
As time went on, people discovered even more damask rose benefits.
A photo of rosa damascene by atulvi at Unsplash
They used the rose water as a cure for all ills, an aphrodisiac and complexion treatment. People who could produce damask rose water and oil never lacked for business.
The damask rose requires good irrigation. So the Near East eventually became the perfect cultivating ground for the rose. They invented equipment to manufacture damask rose water. Then they branched out into producing the oil, called otto in the essential oil industry.
Partake of the mystique of quantum energetic formulated plant-based skincare for your exalted natural beauty and well-being. Subscribe for a discount promo code, plus get truly unique beauty tips and offers.
Damask rose benefits encompass natural inherent beauty and health.
Almost everyone finds the fragrance of rose exquisite. The fragrance of the variety damask rose (Rosa damascena), and in particular its essential oil, is even more sublime.
Symbol of spirituality and mysticism, romance and allure, damask rose benefits are near countless. The rose oil or water works to balance the nervous system, ease emotional shock and grief, and open the heart.
Associated with the Venusian(1) concepts of beauty—especially no makeup beauty—damask rose benefits skin by conditioning it to create a beautiful foundational skin canvas.
A photo of rosa damascene by firexion7 at Unsplash
Prepared as floral water, damask rose benefits skin by toning and hydrating it. It acts as a natural antiseptic. This excellent skin tonic rejuvenates tired skin, helps balance skin conditions and works to heal wounds.
Damask rose benefits cell and tissue regeneration so important for dry and mature skin.
As an essential oil, damask rose is a versatile therapeutic oil.
Skincare formulators use it for its sweet floral and slightly spicy fragrance alongside its impressive skin health benefits.
Damask rose benefits dry skin, broken capillaries and mature and sensitive skin. It’s also an excellent antibacterial and antiviral. One study shows damask rose effective against 15 different strains of bacteria.
Traditional Chinese medicine uses rose to cool and clear moist heat and inflammation. Chinese medicine finds that damask rose benefits the body’s yin energy and combats anxiety and depression.
Damask rose benefits include:
rejuvenation of skin
skin damage prevention
reduction of the appearance of fine lines
lessening of the appearance of broken capillaries on the skin
softening of the appearance stretch marks
sun-damaged skin repair
soothing of dry, itchy skin
clearing of acne
bacteria fighting
easing of poor circulation
reduction of high blood pressure
boosting liver and gall bladder functions
alleviation of symptoms of asthma and hay fever
regulation of digestive problems and stomach upsets
nausea relief
constipation relief
decongestion and strengthening of the liver and gall bladder
cooling hot inflammation and swelling
heightening feelings of vitality
lessening of grief
creating a sense of well-being
bringing calm into stress-related situations
toning of the uterus and easing of painful menses
minimizing of the effects of premenstrual syndrome.
With a strong presence of the phytochemical and antioxidant lycopene, damask rose benefits skin and body by helping prevent many diseases and conditions free radicals cause.
According to the scientific study, “Pharmacological Effects of Rosa Damascena”(2), damask rose has:
“an anti-HIV, antibacterial, antioxidant, antitussive, hypnotic, anti-diabetic, and relaxant effect…”
You can even get damask rose benefits for beauty by consuming damask rose petals.
All rose petals are edible as long as they’re organic. Damask rose benefits include anti-age action because of its high amount of antioxidants. Damask rose promotes more youthful skin and body.
If you use rose petals in food preparation, remove the bitter white base.
Float rose petals in beverages, desserts and salads. Flavor jams and vinegars with rose petals.
Use dried rose petals and buds in herbal teas. It makes the tea more fragrant and provides a calming and mildly diuretic action.
Damask rose benefits are greater than any other rose variety.
Damask rose produces the highest quality essential oil and floral water.
Petals of rosa damascena by hasanalmasi at Unsplash
It takes about 60,000 roses or 200 pounds of petals to make one ounce of rose otto.
There are two types of essential oil derived from the damask rose: otto and absolute.
They offer slightly different in potency damask rose benefits because of two different methods used to produce them.
Absolute is solvent-extracted and is thick and very concentrated. Though thicker than otto, the absolute is still viscous. It is amber colored and somewhat less costly.
Rose otto is the essential oil derived from the petals and no other part of the flower. It’s produced by the more costly method of steam distillation. It’s clear or pale yellow. The otto is rich and intense and a better quality of oil than absolute. Though it’s more expensive than absolute, less otto can be used than absolute to achieve the desired effect.
The most damask rose crops are grown in the Valley of the Roses, Bulgaria.(3) In the world of essential oils, Bulgarian damask rose produces the finest quality attar (fragrance).
“Ounce for ounce, the ‘liquid gold of Bulgaria’ is nearly as expensive as gold.” —Audra Avizienis in Essential Oils: Essential Oil and Aromatherapy Recipes for Wellness, Beauty, and a Healthy Home
When and How Damask Rose Is Harvested Determines the Quality of the Damask Oil.
The damask rose grows as a deciduous shrub about six feet tall and wide. The rose grows on long bowing stems with stout curved prickles and stiff bristles.
The stems bear heads of loosely cupped light to moderate rose pink petals. The shrub sprouts pinnate of five-petaled leaves.
The essential oil content of damask rose depends on how mature the bloom is.
The rose offers a higher more valuable health promoting terpene content when the petal whorl (pattern of spirals) is harvested just as the petals begin to open.
(Terpenes are vibrantly fragrant molecules that occur naturally in plant life. They’re chemicals that provide pigment, scent and flavor.)
When harvesting begins in the Valley of the Roses, more than 50,000 harvesters painstakingly collect the roses by hand. They harvest the roses during a short window of time when the rose’s essential oil is at its highest volume. This optimum time period is the cooler hours of the morning before sunrise.
This time of harvest also helps ensure the greatest damask oil benefits to skin and health.
Bulgarian rose pickers harvest the rose just like they’ve done for centuries—by hand, one rose at a time. It’s labor intensive but they pick the flowers by hand so they don’t lose the potential oil of the flower.
The damask rose petals are very delicate so they steam distill the flower the same day they harvest. Waiting too long to distill will not only cause loss of the prized essential oil, it will reduce the myriad and potency of damask rose benefits when formulated in products.
All the steps of the harvesting method ensure a maximum quality essential oil yield.
Damask rose benefits come from the seeds too.
The seeds of the damask rose also yield a nourishing oil.
Rose seed oil is excellent for treating broken capillaries, sun damage, redness, scars, stretch marks, acne, acne rosacea, enlarged pores, loss of elasticity, fine lines and overall aging of the skin.
It’s a rich source of essential fatty acid omegas 3 and 6. Rose seed oil helps regenerate cell membranes and tissues and is a good source of natural vitamin A.
Damask rose benefits emotional well-being.
The ability to embrace the myriad of damask rose benefits is as individual as ourselves.
When we come into contact with rose, our olfactory system and the brain connect and communicate. Based on past memories and feelings, we identify an attitude the rose expresse to us in the moment.
Damask rose benefits importantly include its ability to uplift our state of consciousness. We immediately notice it stimulates a well-being response within us. Our response may be love, tenderness, wistfulness, serenity, or joy. And our bodies may spontaneously respond to and align with its healing energy as we absorb all the damask rose benefits, energies and frequencies.
We make the myriad of damask rose benefits for health, beauty and skin simply by partaking of a few drops of oil or water. We align to its healing properties, become enlivened, often even healed by it.
…
Endnotes and Sources:
Aphrodite, later known as Venus was the goddess of love, beauty, sex, fertility, and prosperity. Yet, it is her representation of beauty that she is most well known for. Painters and sculptors have personified her, embodied her and epitomized her. “Physical Beauty, Venus - Google Arts & Culture.” Google, Google, artsandculture.google.com/usergallery/ggKCrztJLXu0KQ.
Boskabady, Mohammad Hossein et al. “Pharmacological effects of rosa damascena.” Iranian Journal of Basic Medical Sciences Vol. 14,4 (2011): 295-307.
The damask rose originated in Damascus, Syria, Persia, Alexandria and sixteenth century Europe. Damask rose is currently also cultivated in Europe, Iran, Turkey, Russia and India.
Sources:
Harkness, Peter. The Rose: An Illustrated History. Buffalo, NY: Firefly, 2003. Print.
Avizienis, Audra. Essential Oils: Essential Oil and Aromatherapy Recipes for Wellness, Beauty, and a Healthy Home. United States, Printers Row, 2019.
Das, Kuntal. Essential Oils and Their Applications. India, New India Publishing Agency, 2013.
Houghton, Marlene. Essential Oils & Aromatherapy: Your Personal Guide. United States, Wellfleet Press, 2018.
Kynes, Sandra. Llewellyn's Complete Book of Essential Oils: How to Blend, Diffuse, Create Remedies, and Use in Everyday Life. United States, Llewellyn Worldwide, Limited, 2019.
Mojay, Gabriel. Aromatherapy for Healing the Spirit: Restoring Emotional and Mental Balance with Essential Oils. Rochester, VT: Healing Arts, 1999. Print.
Curtis, Susan, et al. Essential Oils: All-natural Remedies and Recipes for Your Mind, Body and Home. United States, DK Publishing, 2016.
Neals Yard Remedies. Essential Oils. 1st ed. N.p.: DK, 2016. Print.
Godfrey, Heather Dawn. Healing with Essential Oils: The Antiviral, Restorative, and Life-Enhancing Properties of 58 Plants. United States, Inner Traditions/Bear, 2022.
Gailing, Stephanie. The Complete Guide to Astrological Self-Care. United States, Wellfleet Press, 2021.
Curtis, Susan, et al. Natural Beauty: Natural Makeup, Soothing Therapies, Homemade Preparations. United Kingdom, DK Publishing, 2015.