UBC Department of Asian Studies in Buddhist tradition. The design (courtesy of Asian Studies MA student in Japanese Literature and Visual Culture and graphic designer Julien Butterlin) does indeed gesture in this direction, but the flower depicted is in fact that of Camellia sinensis or Thea sinensis, the tea plant whence many teas are derived. A genus of flowering plants in the family Theaceae, Camellia sinensis is used to harvest white tea, green tea, oolong, pu-erh tea and black tea. Tea is the second-most widely consumed beverage in the world after water, and has played and continues to play such a central role in all
Camellia japonica a long time. One of the most important plants related to "Camellia japonica" is the "Camellia sinensis", which is the plant tea comes from. This plant is not usually grown in gardens because it has small white flowers, unlike the "Camellia japonica", which has larger, more beautiful flowers. It is not seen in art as often as the "Camellia japonica", but it is shown in a painting called the "Song Hundred Flowers" which hangs in the Palace Museum in Beijing. "Camellia sinensis" may have been used as medicine during the Shang Dynasty. It was first used for drinking during the