Athelas

Grown all over Middle-Earth, Athelas was a sweet-fragranced herb that came with healing powers. The herb had other names such as Kingsfoil or Asëa Aranion throughout the legendarium. It was known to have healing effects, and could draw poisons out from wounds and help nullify their evil influence. [1]

The name Athelas is made up of two Sindarin terms, “athaya” meaning “helpful or beneficial” and “lass” meaning “leaf”.

Athelas was discovered during the First Age in Beleriand by Huan who used it to cure Beren’s wounds. After the fall of Beleriand, Athelas grew abundantly on the island of Numenor. Numenoreans would bring Athelas on their many voyages to Middle-Earth, and seeds became dispersed among the lands. It started to grow wild in places, and in the North, mostly in areas where the Dúnedain had traveled, camped and settled.

By the end of the Third Age, the healing properties of Athelas had become a lost knowledge amongst most everyone except the Elves and the Dúnedain of the North. [2] To most men and the hobbits, Athelas was regarded to be a mere weed. According to the tales of Gondor, Athelas, known as Kingsfoil, was known for the refreshing fragrance of its leaves, but knowledge of its healing properties had been lost to the years.

Athelas was a powerful herb in the hands of a Dúnedain king of the line of Elendil, mainly because of their Elvish and Numenorean heritage of the Royal House. King Aragorn used Athelas on several occasions, 1) To help heal Frodo’s wound after he was stabbed with a Morgul blade near Weathertop, 2) To help cure Frodo and Sam’s wounds post-Moria’s exit, 3) He helped remedy the evil influence on those who were touched by the Black Breath. Aragorn had secretly entered Minas Tirith after the Battle of Pelennor Fields where he treated Lady Eowyn, Faramir, and the hobbit Merry who were all wounded by the shadow of Black Breath. Ioreth, an elder healer in the Houses of Healing of Minas Tirith, recalled the lore of old when she saw Aragorn work...

When the Black Breath blows
and death's shadow grows
and all lights pass,
come athelas! Come athelas!
Life to the dying
In the king's hand lying!

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It would be yet some time before Aragorn would proclaim himself to Gondor as the Heir of Elendil.

As per the Elvish tale “Lay of Leithian'', Huan and Luthien had used Athelas to treat Beren’s wounds. However, this piece of information contradicts The Lord of the Rings in which it is stated that Athelas was brought to Middle-Earth by Numenoreans. So it is possible that either Athelas’s history was revised by Tolkien or Athelas actually originated from Beleriand before being destroyed, and in the Second Age, Numenoreans brought it back to Middle-Earth.

1. ^Is Athelas based on the real-life plant?
2. ^Come, Athelas! – Middle-earth Reflections.