# Orris (Iris germanica)

**Iris*; the Florentine iris*

**Known today as.** The dried root of *Iris germanica* ‘Florentina’ and *I. pallida*.

Kind: Plant

## What was it used for?

For coughs and the lungs, and above all as a perfume for powders, linen, and the breath.

## What does modern science say?

Now a perfume fixative; the fresh root is irritant.

## Pharmacognosy and toxicology

- **irones**: alpha-, beta-, gamma-irone, the violet scent, formed over years of drying
- **iridin**: an isoflavone glycoside
- **myristic acid**: 

**Mechanism.** The scent develops as the rhizome’s triterpenes oxidise to irones over three years in store, which is why orris is dear; the fresh rhizome is an irritant purgative and emetic by its resins, and the dried a mild expectorant. The teething-ring of orris root given to infants has been dropped for the risk of choking and sensitising.

**Dose.** The fresh root purges; the dried is safe in perfumery doses.

**Standing.** A perfumery fixative; no medical monograph.

## What lore surrounds it?

The lily of Florence’s arms is an iris, and the city’s orris was its trade.

## What did the older authorities say?

**Dioscorides.** Names the Illyrian iris the best, and gives the root for coughs.

## Sources

- Dioscorides, *De materia medica*.
- Jaenicke, L., and Marner, F.-J. (1986). “The irones and their origin.” *Pure and Applied Chemistry* 58.

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*Orris.* In *Materia Medica*, edited by B. C. P. Statema. Version 1, revised 2026-09-25. The Thinking Press. https://thethinkingpress.org/materia-medica/orris

Historical description, not medical advice.