If any of you are in to "old' iris books....."Tall Bearded Iris (Fleur-De-Lis) A Flower Of Song", by Walter Stager, is a wonderful collection of references to iris in poetry, song, and literature, with lots of culture tips, varietal descriptions, etc. that was written in the 1920's. Among the *supposed'* uses fore the rhizome (orris root) are:
perfumery
a *chewing* aid for teething infants(just let 'em chew on a rhizome !)
removing 'freckles"
cure for:
dropsy
piles
stones (?)
convulsions
King's evil (?)
shortness of breath
coughs
I think the book is still available on places like Amazon, for about $20, and, as I said ,if you like READING about iris, or enjoy poetry, or, want to try "culture" the way it USED to be....check it out !

Ever notice how medical ailments used to be titled with one word names? Another one that comes to mind -- *vapors*. And *consumption*. I'm sure there are more that I'm not remembering................

Yes, Sapphire Gin is made with Orris root. I believe it is labelled as such. And I knew it was used in Moroccan food (yummy stuff) and in some pastries of turkish and moroccan origin.

Thanks for the list of perfumes. I will need to check them out to see which one smells the most like a real iris. I am crazy about the scent of irises.

King's Evil: a tuberculous swelling of the lymph glands. It was thought it could be cured by the touch of a royal. (!!)

I know in magical herblore you use orris as part of a herb pouch to bless a new baby. I will have to look up the particulars on that though.