Lake Van is the largest lake in Turkey. A saline soda lake, it's fed by numerous mountain streams. Van lacks a water outlet, making it...

Mahaleb cherry (Prunus mahaleb) or St. Lucie cherry is a species of fruit tree cultivated for a spice in the cherry stones. The fruit...

Mount Nemrut is a dormant volcano in Van province of east Turkey, near Lake Van in the Armenian Highlands. Nemrut is named for the...

The great cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo) has a scattered range throughout the world. Largest of the cormorants, the bird is hunted...

Alum is an ingredient in processes such as dyeing fabric, tanning hides and water purification. Alum is ubiquitous in ancient and...

Pistacia is a shrub or tree prized for food , resin, tannins, oils and natural turpentine for thousands of years in the Mediterranean...

Mad honey comes from a group of plant-produced neurotoxins named after Leucothoe grayana, a plant native to Japan. Grayanotoxins can...

Wheat, barley, millet and rice are four of the ancient grains, going back to the Neolithic agrarian revolution c. 10,000 BCE. Ancient...

Mugworts are used in folk medicine of India, China, Europe, America and other regions. A member of Artemisia , mugwort is also called...

Yarrow is an herb of magic and medicine. A flowering plant native to the northern hemisphere yarrow (Achillea millefolium) is commonly...

Black is among the first pigments in the palette of early humans. By Paleolithic times, black defines lines, shadows and meaning. Black...

White pigments used in ancient art, spirituality and beauty include bone, limestone variations like chalk and other natural sources....

Red ocher is among the first colors appearing on the palette of early humans, along with white and red. Black, white and red are also...

Ephedra is a genus of shrub growing in hot arid and semi-arid regions throughout the world. As a natural health medicine plant and...

Salt is an essential mineral of life. In food it stimulates taste and is among the oldest preservation methods. Part of the human taste...

Pomegranate ( Punica granatum ) is one of the seven ancient foods of the southern Mediterranean. Figs are also part of the group....

The God Ishum is the sukkal or divine attendant of Nergal, Lord of the Underworld, death and disease. Like many deified sukkals, Ishum...

An innocuous shrub of desert regions, green ushtun ( Seidlitzia rosmarinus ) is used by ancients for soap and medicine. In Mesopotamia...

Scorpion men (Akkadian: girtablullû, aqrabuamelu) make an appearance in various Akkadian language myths. They include the Enûma Elish...

Watercress ( Nasturtium officinale ) grows in fresh water. With hollow stems, it floats and is easily gathered from the water's surface....