Whoever reading this, be aware!
What I am about to tell you is about a single tree specie played a role that shape human civilisation. This genus touches to the most important aspects of life that made whatever we are now and our “the most importants”.
Religion, Capitalism, Alphabet, History!, Beliefs, huge systems that control our daily life and many important sub-topics more.
I am not talking about something like invention of iPhone.
I am not talking about Steve Jobs.
It is more like the invention of Internet that changes everything of everything.
Not only its industry or relevant sectors etc, but also society, politics, beliefs, science, new systems, new “humans”.
Even more importantly allowing us to dream about the future possibilities of undone/unmade things.
Thats why, I couldn’t treat this article like my previous ones, thus, first time in my blog I write 1 article only about “mighty Cedar Wood” and another article about “Cedar Wood oil”.
So yes this special article is about a single tree specie, Cedar Wood.
Our mighty Cedar Wood..
So let's start with boring but important "wikipedia" into.
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Cedrus, with the common Eng name cedar is a genus of coniferous trees in the plant family Pinaceae |
Cedars native to the mountains of the western Himalayas and the Mediterranean region occurring at altitudes of
1,500–3,200 m
in the Himalayas
1,000–2,200 m
in the Mediterranean.
Cedrus can grow
up to 30–40 m
(occasionally 60 m) tall
with spicy-resinous scented wood
thick ridged or square-cracked bark
and broad level branches.
Now we can dive into to exciting parts.. 😊
Cedar Wood is;
the pride of a country and an emblem of country’s flag (still). Lebanon.
a vital essence of the first international trade that change the course of international relations.
one of the resource that turns little tribes into shiny kingdoms and then into creator societies.
our infallible guidance in the vast memories of Ancient History and help us understanding it.
the only tree specie mentioned 72 times in the most famous and sold book of human history “The Bible” and often other ancient texts like Gilgamesh, The Iliad.
used in ancient temples, palaces and tombs of the famous kings, emperors, and the priests that wrote and shaped our beliefs.
the raw material to provide shelter, clothes, weapons, tools, medicines and art to many ancient tribes and kingdoms.
and the list goes on and on..
Yes, it is a very impressive start for a “single tree specie”, don’t you think?
Well, we have just started.. 😏
First seeds of Inter-National sea trades
Year - 3000 BC
Location - modern Lebanon
Civilization - Phoenicia
Phoenicia, was an ancient Semitic thalassocratic civilization originating in the Levant region of the eastern Mediterranean, primarily located in modern Lebanon.
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| The most important cities, Byblos, Sidon and Tyre. |
The Phoenicians
were the dominant commercial power
for much of the classical antiquity thanks to their expansive
maritime trade network that
lasted over
a millennium.
You might think that that much of commercial power comes from many natural resources
but NO.
Phoenicia lacked of considerable natural resources other than its Cedar Wood.
Cedar Timber was probably the earliest and most lucrative source of wealth
neither Egypt nor Mesopotamia had adequate wood sources.
So what they sell is mostly Cedar Wood and all its applications alongside of some other products.
What made them a Superpower is that they know how to use Cedar Wood innovatively.
They are "the Steve Jobs" of Cedar Wood applications.
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| CW is both strong and flexible comparing its "competition" oak. |
So how Cedar Wood played that important role in International Trade?
Well, Phoenicians renowned their fame from
“skilled traders”
and
“mariners”
thanks to their innovative approach to shipbuilding.
And big applause to
Cedar Wood.
They invented
Bireme (an ancient Galley)
Trireme (an ancient Vessel)
and the very first
Cedar Wood is strong, light, rot and parasite-resistant and the relatively soft heartwood was easily shaped with bronze tools.
Cedar Wood was always used for the ship’s mast.
A Cedar mast was tall and straight, strong and flexible whereas a more rigid wood could break in wind.
So Cedar Wood is one of the most util materials in shipbuilding.
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| Imagine what you can do with these routes if you have good ships.. |
And that what exactly Phoenicians did
which lead them
to become
“the first sea trading nation
in history”.
This expansive and enduring trade network is credited with laying the foundations of an economically and culturally cohesive Mediterranean, which would be continued by the Greeks and especially the Romans and of Classical Western Civilization.
from a simple fishing village to "everything"
Among all others, a little port city “Babylos” deserves a little bit more attention here.
A simple fishing village that had been inhabited since 6500 BC, grew into a prosperous city and became the world’s first international seaport and played an extraordinary role in the Mediterranean and Middle East from 3000 BC
thanks to “again” Cedar Wood both in trading and using for shipbuilding.
Byblos is one of the oldest
continuously inhabited
cities in the world
that inhabited
by the most powerful
civilisations like
Egyptian
Assyrian
Persian
Hellenistic
Roman
Fatimid
Genoese
Mamluk
Ottoman
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| It was in ancient Byblos that the Phoenician alphabet, likely the ancestor of the Greek, Latin and all other Western alphabets, was developed |
Cedar Wood explain ancient HISTORY to us
Cedar Wood and all its application throughout ancient history tells us what we did, how we did and put a an enormous light onto vast darkness of human civilisation.
Since 4000-5000 BC it was started to use in many applications. And preserved perfectly until our days.
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| Thousands of years no rotting!! |
(a coffin or a container to hold a coffin) created to protect mummies in the afterlife, were intricately carved from cedar.
High priests revered the rich, wood’s powerful ability to heighten awareness of the spiritual realm.
Scholars believe that temple doors in every temple were fashioned from cedar to enrich and magnify devotee’s awareness of their gods.
Egyptian documents dating from 2600 B.C. say the pharaoh Snefru imported 40 cargoes of undressed Cedar timber from Byblos for boat building.
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the Egyptians used cedar sawdust for mummification
and the resin
known as Cedria
for
embalming.
The resinous sap of Cedar Wood kept wood safe from worms.
The wood is protected from decay and marauding insects like moths.
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| 4000 years old!! Made of Cedar Wood. Here they are. Like brand new :) |
Carnegie Boat, Chicago boat, Red Boat, White boat - 10 mt/2.3 mt
1900 BC
The boats are thought to have been used to carry the body of the Senusret III down the Nile, and were then transported over land to his Pyramid by sledges.
Made of Cedar Wood from Horsh Ehden forest in the Mount Lebanon
It is one of the most durable woods and It lasts for centuries.
Cedar fibres contain natural compounds called thujaplicins that act as natural preservatives.
It can absorb moisture and deodorise and It is decay-resistance.
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| Attention! It is not a model.. It is "the Ship" !! |
(Cheops' barge)
43.4 mt - 5.9 mt
2500 BC
It is of the type known as a "solar barge"
a ritual vessel believed
by ancient Egyptians
to carry the resurrected king
across the heavens
with the sun god
Ra.
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| White Boat - 1900 BC - Lebanese Cedar Wood |
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| Chicago Boat - 1900 BC - Lebanese Cedar Wood |
Alphonse de Lamartine, French poet and historian (1790-1869).
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| Red Boat - 1900 BC - Lebanese Cedar Wood |
CEDARWOOD in MYTHOLOGY
If we want to understand Cedar Wood in mythology, we have to go to
Qadisha Valley of Bsharre, Lebanon, one of the last vestiges of the extensive forests of the Lebanon cedar that thrived across Mount Lebanon in antiquity and dive into Mesopotamian mythology of “Cedar Forest” mentioned in one of the most famous myth written, “Epic of Gilgamesh”, by the King of Uruk “Gilgamesh”.
Poems about Cedar wood can be found in tablets 4-6.
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The stunning canyon that is the Qadisha Valley is 1000 metres deep and home to holy caves and monasteries; a place of refuge from religious persecution for a thousand years.
Ouadi Qadisha is one of the most important settlement sites of the first Christian monasteries in the world…
UNESCO
It was said that Cedar Forest is guarded by Humbaba (Huwawa)
(figured mostly to an ogre, giant or demon) appointed by the weather God Wer.
Gilgamesh (Ruler the city of Uruk) and his companion Enkidu enter the gloriously beautiful Cedar Forest and begin to cut down the trees.
Hearing the sound, Humbaba comes roaring up to them and warns them off.
Enkidu shouts at Humbaba that the two of them are much stronger than the demon
but Humbaba, who knows Gilgamesh is a king, taunts the king for taking orders from a nobody like Enkidu.
Turning his face into a hideous mask, Humbaba begins to threaten the pair
Gilgamesh runs and hides.
Enkidu shouts at Gilgamesh, inspiring him with courage
and Gilgamesh appears from hiding
and the two begin their epic battle with Humbaba.
Shamash intrudes on the battle, helping the pair, and Humbaba is defeated.
On his knees, with Gilgamesh's sword at his throat, Humbaba begs for his life and offers Gilgamesh all the trees in the forest and his eternal servitude.
While Gilgamesh is thinking this over, Enkidu intervenes, telling Gilgamesh to kill Humbaba before any of the gods arrive and stop him from doing so.
Should he kill Humbaba, he will achieve widespread fame for all the times to come.
Gilgamesh, with a great sweep of his sword, removes Humbaba's head.
But before he dies, Humbaba screams out a curse on Enkidu:
"Of you two, may Enkidu not live the longer, may Enkidu not find any peace in this world!"
Soon later Enkidu becomes sick and dies.
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| Start of the deforestation.. :( |
Gilgamesh and Enkidu cut down the cedar forest and in particular the tallest of the cedar trees to make a great cedar gate for the city of Nippur.
They build a raft out of the cedar and float down the Euphrates (the longest and one of the most historically important rivers of Western Asia) to their city Uruk.
Since than over the centuries, cedar wood in Lebanon (Cedro Libani) was exploited by the Phoenicians, Egyptians, Israelites, Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Romans, Arabs, Turks and many other nations.
Cedar was considered the most suitable gift, carefully chosen, to glorify the gods
Noah burned cedarwood and myrtle in gratitude to Heaven for sparing his life from the flood. The text reassured us “The Gods were pleased.”
Cedar wood in Religion/Medicine/Rituals
The cedar tree, tall, strong, and steadfast.
So rich with oil that insects and moths all decide to keep their distances.
It is calm, unhurried by time.
Imagine those huge Egyptian ships, safe, sturdy and protecting against the buffeting of the waves.
Cedarwood keeps us calm, steady and unconcerned by the eye of the storm.
Here we understand the deep healing of the oil;
time has not dominion
the journey will take as long as it takes...
Throughout time priests and royalty have chosen cedarwood as their security even against the horror of death and fear of the wrath of gods.
These are the magnitude of the mental trials healed by cedarwood essential oil.
Wood chippings were placed into a clay pot which was then heated.
Wool was scrunched up over the cedar; as warmth released aromatic molecules from the wood they were captured in the wool.
They were then squeezed out, separated off and then used to embalm the dead.
King Solomon procured cedar timber to build the Temple in Jerusalem (1000 BC) (2 Chr 2:3-8)
The ancient Greeks used cedar oil in order to ward off infection, and would often use cedar oil on papaya leaves to prevent insect infestation.
During the Middle Ages, Europeans thought that placing a cedar tree adjacent to their front doors would keep witches from entering their houses.
Native American and Tibetan communities would use the oil to ease the symptoms of coughs and hiccups.
Our forefathers often spread cedarwood dust on the floors of their homes to ward off a wide variety of pests.
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| Jesus was hung on a cross made of cypress and Cedar |
Cedar is mentioned 72 times in the Bible, and many ancient texts like Gilgamesh, The Iliad..
David used Cedar in building his palace (2 Sam 5:11; 1 Chr 17:1)
Hebrew priests were ordered by Moses to use the bark of the Lebanon cedar in the treatment of leprosy and circumcision.
Many ancient tribes burn the oil to enhance meditation practices.
Use our Cedarwood Oil for spells and rituals involving purification, healing, and hex removal, where you're seeking to cleanse yourself, your home, or another of negative energies and spirits
In the Himalayas, Buddhist monks have always used cedarwood to calm and still their minds in meditation to enhance strength and certainty in their faith.
Ancient priests used cedarwood to bring them closer to spirit and to protect them from the energies of harm.
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| Another ancient name for Cedar is Arbor Vitae, Tree of Life |
From one side, I would never guessed how effective can be "a single tree specie" on everything.
Another side, how instructive can it be an insignificant topic on someones life.
I have spent weeks to collect all these information and make this story
Cried, laughed, got excited, amazed, think, changed, compared
took lessons, decided about my life...
And understood "this" deeply.
Why Cedar..?
Its just..
What Cedar does to humanity silently and humbly
It simply keeps doing the same to me.
Grow..
"The righteous flourish like the palm tree and grow like a cedar in Lebanon"
The Bible Psalm 92:12
I wish you enjoyed..
