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Once the plant was stockpiled alongside gold, and its saplings carried the value of silver. It was said to cure everything from abdominal pain to warts—and spice up a Roman lentil dish.
But nearly 2,000 years ago, the miraculous silphion was the first-ever plant reported to have gone extinct. In central Turkey, however, researchers believe they have stumbled upon the ancient silphion in the wild (pictured above)—its grooved, buff-colored stalks giving off a pleasant scent between eucalyptus and pine sap. “You can see why everybody who encounters this plant becomes attached to it,” says professor Mahmut Miski.
If the researchers are right, the plant could—once again—become a chemical goldmine.
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