Showing posts with label Romans. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Romans. Show all posts

Thursday, September 20, 2018

Yes, the Plant is Now Extinct



Ancient Romans had an effective natural contraceptive: a plant called silphium. The shape of the seed is where we get the traditional heart shape that we all recognize as a symbol of love.

The Romans harvested so much silphium that it went extinct, and now we’re not even sure exactly what type of plant it was.