Saffron is a plant which has always been the object of a lot of legends. These legends confer to saffron a mysterious and magic air.

Inside the antique Greek mythology it is told that there was a young handsome man called Krokos who was the target of several legends which aim to explain the saffron origin as well as its unusual characteristics.

Some of these legends tell that the unfortunate fate of Krokos was to die accidentally because of his loving, Hermes God while they were throwing the discus. From each of his blood drop a saffron flower grew and then, the stigmas colour would be related to the blood colour.

Another, not as dramatic legend, tells that Krokos was madly in love with the nymph Smilax and their love was so big and tender that when they died, Gods converted Krokos into the saffron plant (Crocus sativus L.) and Smilax into an homonym plant (Smilax aspera) popularly known as sarsaparilla.

In the past, it was thought that saffron didn't lose its quality, so it could be amassed as gold with the certainty of a permanent revaluation. Saffron producers, aware of its sales simplicity often kept a part of the crop as a precaution against possible needs. For a long time many villages used saffron as exchange money.