Have you ever heard that folk ballad, "Scarborough Fair"? You know, the one that lists a bunch of herbs in the middle of every verse: parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme? Though it was popularized in the 1960s by singer-songwriter duo, Simon & Garfunkel, the song has roots in Medieval England; it's named after a big open-air market that took place in Scarborough, a town outside of Yorkshire, in Northern England. At the fair, all sorts of merchants, farmers, entertainers, and visitors would gather for food, drink, revelry, and, yes, stocking up on herbs.
Back then, herbs were prized for their numerous purported medicinal and healing powers: parsley, for settling the stomach and curing toothaches; sage, to treat epilepsy, liver failure, and fevers; rosemary, for everything from cleaning teeth to warding off evil spirits. Thyme, the most powerful of them all, was long associated with courage, bravery, and strength on the battlefield; it was known to be an antidote to poison, a preventer of the plague, and a lot more.
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