In the magic potion of king Mithridates

This plant Clinopodium Vulgare, commonly named wild basil, has traditionally been used as an astringent, a cardiac stimulant, an expectorant, to reduce flatulence and to increase perspiration.

It was part of the Theriac or theriaca, the medical concoction originally formulated by the Greeks in the 1st century AD (Mithridates VI of Pontus) and widely adopted in the ancient world as far away as China and India via the trading links of the Silk Route.

It has been used traditionally in Bulgaria for the healing of wounds and has been shown to have anti-bacterial properties.