the.com/flax
the plant that dressed pharaohs and now lubricates your morning smoothie
means A slender blue-flowered plant whose fibers are spun into linen and whose seeds yield linseed oil and a nutty, omega-rich health food.
from From Old English 'fleax,' rooted in a Germanic word (compare Dutch 'vlas' and German 'Flachs'). Many trace it to an ancient root meaning 'to plait' or 'weave' — fitting for a plant whose whole destiny is to be twisted into thread, though that connection is suggested rather than certain.
- older than wool
- Spun into linen over 30,000 years ago
- two careers
- Same plant gives linen and linseed oil
- mummy wrap
- Egyptians buried their dead in linen
- omega bomb
- Seeds rival fish for omega-3 fats
- money paper
- US dollars are part flax fiber
egyptian linen mummies — ancient egypt used flax to wrap pharaohs starting around 3000 bce, thousands of preserved examples exist
saskatchewan canada production — canada produces 30% of world flax supply, with saskatchewan as the leading province since the 1990s
linseed oil paint — master painters like rembrandt and van gogh used linseed oil from flax seeds as their primary medium in the 16th-19th centuries