The beauty of the Damascene rose defeats the ugliness of war

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60 km away from the Syrian capital, Damascus, in the Qalamoun Mountains, lies the village of Al-Mrah; the original home of the Damascene rose.

At this time every year, people organize special festivals to celebrate the season of picking this rose.

The Damascene rose is not only a part of the cultural identity of the region but also an important economic resource for many families who inherited its cultivation from generation to generation and produced many products based on the aromatic, nutritional, cosmetic, and medicinal properties of the rose.

What is the secret of the Damascene rose?

The Damascene rose became famous throughout the ages, as it moved from the Levant to the ancient world at the hands of the Greeks, Romans, and ancient Egyptians, then to Europe during the Frankish war.

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Damascene roses are mainly known for their cosmetic benefits. The flower's essence is used in the production of rose water and its essential oil, which is considered the most expensive in the world.

Furthermore, these roses are used in food processing and are no less important than the cosmetic ones: Rose jam has a high nutritional value, and rose syrup is the most popular drink in Damascus served to guests.

History is full of stories of kings and the Damascene rose, as it is considered one of the main emblems of the British royal family: The rose was the symbol of the English Tudor dynasty, and the ten-petaled Tudor rose (termed a double rose) is associated with England. It is said that when Salah Al-Din Al-Ayyubi liberated Al-Quds from the Crusaders, he brought 500 camels loaded with rose water from Damascus to purify it from the filth of the invaders.

Caliph Al-Mutawakkil was so impressed by this rose that he prevented people from planting it, saying, “I am the king of kings, and this is the queen of roses, so we deserve each other."

As for literature, the Damascene rose was mentioned in many writings, most notably the epics of the Iliad and the Odyssey. Even when Shakespeare wanted to describe the beauty of a woman in one of his plays, he said, “She is as beautiful as the beauty of the Damascene rose."

Harvesting season... Joy and restoring memories destroyed by war

Everyone listens to the beautiful voice of Umm Ahmad, as she hums many folk songs while she is picking roses. She said to Al Mayadeen English, “We are here preparing the land for cultivation, planting, and picking. Not only that, but we also make post-harvest products, such as rose water, oil, jam, syrup, and cosmetic creams, all from our roses and our bushes."

The fifty-year-old woman explains to the visitors how roses are sorted. Some are suitable for syrup and others for jam. She says, “We dry rose buds to make warm infusions that are useful in treating colds and strengthening immunity. 1 kg rose oil is obtained from 11000 kg roses if we use old distillation equipment. As for modern devices, every 4 tons give one kilogram of essential oil."

“Beautiful days,” is how Umm Ahmed describes the days before 2011, and she recalls them saying, “My husband, children, and I used to transport tons of crop, to the Al-Buzuriyeh souq in Damascus, where specialized Lebanese merchants would take our products and export them to Europe, specifically to France, where they would distill it to manufacture the best and most luxurious perfumes."

Umm Ahmad is looking forward to an abundant season this year after the rains that she described as sufficient. She was holding a wreath of roses in her hand and offered it to us so that we can smell its scent. She said, laughing, “Didn't you hear what our poet Nizar Qabbani said?.. I am your Damascene flower, O people of the Levant… For whoever finds me, puts me in a vase."

The smell of roses overwhelms that of lead

With remarkable lightness, Reem put some of the roses she picked in the large pocket of her bib apron, placed the other handful in a small basket, and said to Al Mayadeen English, “This year, we moved the indoor rose water machine into the field, to gain time, and reduce effort and costs, as this gives more value to the product."

The young woman tells us that she misses some lectures at the university, so as not to miss this atmosphere full of enthusiasm and happiness, which only happens once a year. And she continues, “Although I find it difficult to wake up at dawn, but in the season of harvest, I feel the opposite, it’s a joyful time."

Reem goes to the house near the field to prepare rose syrup, which is the traditional Damascene hospitality.

She looks at her hands and points to the traces of wounds left by the thorns of roses, and explains, “This is painful… All the women of the village have such wounds… But my mother says that we, women of the new generations, are less able to bear the hardships of rural life."

The young woman held back her tears, remembering her brother who was martyred during the war, “He used to love this drink very much. I wish he was here to witness the celebration of the rose festival once again and how we went back to planting Damascene roses."

'More precious than gold'; 'more important than oil'

Madian Al-Bitar, head of the Al-Mrah Association for the Revival and Development of the Damascene Rose, tours the village fields, checking on the course of the harvesting season. He told Al Mayadeen English, “We are working exponentially to expand the cultivation of the Damascene rose and develop its industries after it was included in the UNESCO list of intangible world cultural heritage."

Al-Bitar, who has been working in the cultivation of roses for many years, considered that the cultivation of this rose was neglected in previous periods, but the situation is better today, as he explained, “The Damascene rose has suffered from the repercussions of the war in Syria during the past years. Farmers were forced to abandon their lands upon the terrorists' control over the villages of Qalamoun, and the area of ​​lands planted with roses decreased from 2,000 dunums to nearly one thousand. But today, we are here again, and our lands have been restored, and we will make the Damascene rose bloom again so that its fragrance spreads all over the world."