By: Mihran Kalaydjian, CHA
16 Facts About Artichokes

The artichoke is a perennial thistle that originated in the Mediterranean. The artichoke is technically a flower bud that has not yet bloomed.

The first mention of artichokes in literature was around 40-70 AD in The Greek Herbal of Dioscorides, a book on the medicinal uses of plants.

The Greeks and Romans considered them to be an aphrodisiac.

Artichoke seeds were found during the excavation of Mons Claudianus in Egypt during the Roman period.

Until the 16th century, women were prohibited from eating them in many countries because they were still considered to have aphrodisiac properties.

In 1576, Dr. Bartolomeo Boldo wrote in the “Book of Nature” that the artichoke “has the virture of … provoking Venus for both men and women; for women making them more desirable, and helping the men who are in these matters rather tardy.”