{{Short description|Species of plant in the genus Rosa}} {{Use dmy dates|date=August 2016}} {{Speciesbox | image = مراسم گلابگیری در قمصر کاشان Golabgiri ("making Rosewater") - Ghamsar- Kashan- Iran 19.jpg | genus = Rosa | species = × damascena | authority = Mill. }}
'''''Rosa'' × ''damascena''''' (Latin for '''damascene rose'''), more commonly known as the '''Damask rose''',<ref name=":1">{{PLANTS|id=RODA|taxon=Rosa × damascena|access-date=1 February 2016}}</ref><ref name=BSBI07>{{BSBI 2007 |access-date=2014-10-17 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> or sometimes as the '''Iranian Rose''', '''Bulgarian rose''', '''Taif rose''', '''Emirati rose''', '''Ispahan rose''', '''Isparta rose''', and '''Castile rose''', is a rose hybrid derived from ''Rosa gallica'' and ''Rosa moschata''.<ref name=Huxley>{{cite book|editor=Huxley, A.|year=1992|title=New RHS Dictionary of Gardening|publisher=Macmillan}}</ref> DNA analysis has shown that a third species, ''Rosa fedtschenkoana'', made some genetic contributions to the Damask rose.<ref>*Harkness, P. (2003). ''The Rose: An Illustrated History''. Firefly</ref>
The flowers are renowned for their fine fragrance and are commercially harvested for rose oil (either "rose otto" or "rose absolute") used in perfumery and to make rose water and "rose concrete". The flower petals are also edible. They are used to flavor food, as a garnish, as an herbal tea, and preserved in sugar as gulkand. The Damask rose is the national flower of Iran.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2004 |title=A study on the relationships between Iranian people and Damask rose (Rosa damascena) and its therapeutic and healing properties |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/260293005|quote=The origin of Damask rose is the Middle East and it is the national flower of Iran.}}</ref>
In 2019, the Damask rose was added to the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists as an element of Syrian cultural heritage.<ref name=":1" />
== Description == The Damask rose is a deciduous shrub growing to {{convert|2.2|m}} tall, the stems densely armed with stout, curved prickles and stiff bristles. The leaves are pinnate, with five (rarely seven) leaflets. The roses are a light to moderate pink to light red. The relatively small flowers grow in groups. The bush has an informal shape. It is considered an important type of Old Rose, and also important for its prominent place in the pedigree of many other types.
=== Varieties === The hybrid is divided in two varieties:<ref name=Huxley/> *'''Summer Damasks''' (''R.'' × ''damascena'' nothovar. ''damascena'') have a short flowering season, only in the summer. *'''Autumn Damasks''' (''R.'' × ''damascena'' nothovar. ''semperflorens'' (Duhamel) Rowley) have a longer flowering season, extending into the autumn; they are otherwise not distinguishable from the summer damasks.
The hybrid ''Rosa'' × ''centifolia'' is derived in part from ''Rosa'' × ''damascena'', as are Bourbon, Portland and hybrid perpetual roses.
The cultivar known as ''Rosa gallica'' forma ''trigintipetala'' or ''Rosa damascena'' 'Trigintipetala' is considered to be a synonym of ''Rosa'' × ''damascena''.<ref>{{GRIN | ''Rosa gallica'' f. ''trigintipetala'' | 5352 | access-date = 11 December 2017}}</ref>
'Celsiana' is a flowering semi-double variety.
== History == ''Rosa'' × ''damascena'' is a cultivated flower not found in the wild. Recent genetic tests indicate that it is a hybrid of ''R. moschata'' x ''R. gallica'' crossed with the pollen of ''Rosa fedtschenkoana'', which indicates a probable origin in the foothills of central Asia<ref>''Triparental Origin of Damask Roses'', Iwata H1, Kato T, Ohno S., ''Gene'', Vol. 259, Issues 1-2, 23 December 2000, pages 53-9.</ref> or Iran.<ref>{{Cite journal|date=2016-01-01|title=Rosa damascena as holy ancient herb with novel applications|journal=Journal of Traditional and Complementary Medicine|language=en|volume=6|issue=1|pages=10–16|doi=10.1016/j.jtcme.2015.09.005|issn=2225-4110|quote=Rosa damascena Mill is the hybrid between R. gallica and R. Phoenicia and is the member of Rosaceae family with more than 200 species and 18,000 cultivars around the world. R. damascena as the king of flowers has been the symbol of love, purity, faith and beauty since the ancient times. It was originated from Iran and essential oil extracting from its flowers has been started since 7th century A.D.|doi-access=free|last1=Mahboubi |first1=Mohaddese |pmid=26870673 |pmc=4737971 }}</ref>
The French Crusader Robert de Brie, who took part in the Siege of Damascus in 1148 at the Second Crusade, is sometimes credited for bringing the Damask rose from Syria to Europe.<ref>{{cite web |author=Selina Denman |url=https://www.thenationalnews.com/arts-culture/the-city-gardener-the-damask-rose-s-history-and-appeal-1.187113 |title=The city gardener: the damask rose's history and appeal |website=The National News |date=25 May 2016 }}</ref> The rose's name refers to the city of Damascus, Syria, known for its steel (Damascus steel), fabrics (Damask), and roses.
Other accounts say that the ancient Romans brought it to their colonies in England or that a physician of King Henry VIII, Thomas Linacre, gave him one circa 1540.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Putnam |first=George Palmer |url=http://archive.org/details/worldsprogressdi00putniala |title=The world's progress : a dictionary of dates |date=1878 |publisher=New York : Putnam |others=University of California Libraries |pages=387}}</ref> The latter claim is dubious because Linacre died in 1524, 16 years before the rose's introduction to the royal garden.
There is a history of fragrance production in Kabul Province of Afghanistan from the Damask rose.<ref name=UNDP>{{Cite web |url=https://www.un.org/apps/news/infocus/afghanistan/infocusnews.asp?NewsID=750&sID=1 |title=''Afghan Rose Oil, An Attractive Fragrance for International Markets'' |access-date=29 June 2017 |archive-date=24 February 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170224185649/http://www.un.org/apps/news/infocus/afghanistan/infocusnews.asp?NewsID=750&sID=1 |url-status=dead }}</ref> An attempt has been made to restore this industry as an alternative for farmers who produce opium.<ref name=UNDP/>
The flower, known in Hawaiian as ''Lokelani'', is the official flower of the Island of Maui.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol01_Ch0001-0042F/HRS0005/HRS_0005-0016.htm|title=State flower and individual island flowers|website=Hawaii State Legislature|access-date=2019-10-07}}</ref>
The Bengali writer Nirad Chaudhuri recalls that Hindus in East Bengal did not cultivate it because it was "looked upon as an Islamic flower".<ref>{{Cite book |last=Chaudhuri |first=Nirad |title=The Autobiography of an Unknown Indian |publisher=Hogarth Press |year=1987 |location=London |pages=21 |language=English}}</ref>
== Cultivation == ''Rosa'' × ''damascena'' is optimally cultivated in hedgerows to help protect the blooms from wind damage and facilitate harvesting. In Bulgaria, damask roses are grown in long hedges, while in Turkey, individual plants are spaced apart along trenches.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last=Widrlechner |first=Mark P. |date=1981 |title=History and Utilization of Rosa damascena |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4254246 |journal=Economic Botany |volume=35 |issue=1 |pages=42–58 |doi=10.1007/BF02859214 |jstor=4254246 |s2cid=22291892 |issn=0013-0001|url-access=subscription }}</ref> Gathering the flowers is intense manual labor. The harvesting period for roses depends on weather and location and can be as long as a month in cooler conditions and as short as 16-20 days in hotter seasons.<ref name=":0" />
==Rose oil== {{more citations needed|section|date=July 2018}} Iran, Bulgaria, and Turkey are the major producers of rose oil from the cultivars of ''Rosa'' × ''damascena''. France and India also contribute significantly to the market.
The cultivation of the "Bulgarian rose" as ''Rosa'' × ''damascena'' has been developed since Roman times. It is cultivated for commercial use in an area in the vicinity of Kazanlak and Karlovo in Bulgaria called the "Valley of Roses". The distillate from these roses is called "Bulgarian rose oil" and "Bulgarian rose otto". Families still operate small distilleries and produce what is denominated "village oil", but a state cooperative in Turkey's Isparta region carefully regulates the commercialization of rose oil. The roses are still grown by the family farms but are brought to stills established and regulated by the cooperative for distillation and quality control.
{{Gallery | title = Damask Rose Cultivation and Processing | align = center | height = 120 | perrow = 4 | noborder = no |File:مراسم گلابگیری در قمصر کاشان Golabgiri ("making Rosewater") - Ghamsar- Kashan- Iran 18.jpg |alt1=A young man and a woman in hijab reach toward the camera to pluck roses from a row of bushes. |Damask roses being harvested in Isfahan Province, Iran. |File:مراسم گلابگیری در قمصر کاشان Golabgiri ("making Rosewater") - Ghamsar- Kashan- Iran 08.jpg|alt2=A man in work clothes pours an apron full of rose blooms onto a spread-out sheet, adding to a small mound of already collected roses. |Harvested damask roses being piled together in the field, Isfahan Province, Iran. |File:مراسم گلابگیری در قمصر کاشان Golabgiri ("making Rosewater") - Ghamsar- Kashan- Iran 22.jpg|alt3=Pink rose blooms are poured into an outdoor pot still.|Rose blooms are added to a pot still for distillation |File:مراسم گلابگیری در قمصر کاشان Golabgiri ("making Rosewater") - Ghamsar- Kashan- Iran 30.jpg|Rose water, distilled from fresh damask roses, is bottled for later use and distribution, Iran. }}
==Culinary uses== Damask roses are used in cooking as a flavoring ingredient or spice. They are an ingredient in the spice mixture denominated ''ras el hanout''. Rose water and powdered roses are used in Middle Eastern and Indian cuisine. Rose water is often sprinkled on meat dishes, while rose powder is added to sauces. Chicken with rose is a popular Middle Eastern dish. Whole flowers, or petals, are also used in the herbal tea ''zuhurat''. The most popular use is in the flavoring of desserts such as ice cream, jam, Turkish delights, rice pudding, yogurt, etc.
For centuries, the Damask rose has symbolized beauty and love. Its fragrance has been captured and preserved in the form of rose water by a method that can be traced to ancient times in the Middle East and later to the Indian subcontinent.
Modern Western cookery does not use roses or rose water much, but it was a popular ingredient in ancient times and remained popular well into the Renaissance. It was most commonly used in desserts, and is still used in traditional desserts. It has seen some revival in television cooking in the 21st century.
==See also== *Rose oil *Miracle of the roses
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== *{{Commons category-inline}} *{{Wikispecies-inline}} *[https://gernot-katzers-spice-pages.com/engl/Rosa_dam.html Gernot Katzer's Spice Dictionary - Damask Rose] *[http://www.photoparsi.com/5/515-rosa-harvesting-in-meimand Rosa harvesting in Meimand]; Photos. *[https://www.pallasweb.com/deesis/the-roses-of-constantinople.html Roses of Constantinople - Damask Rose Kazanlik]
{{Herbs & spices}} {{Taxonbar|from=Q578904}} {{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rosa damascena}} Category:Herbs Category:Spices Category:Medicinal plants Category:Flora of Pakistan Category:Hybrid plants damascena Category:Taxa named by Philip Miller