Several theories depict garlic as a symbol of protection.
Perhaps most notably, it’s believed garlic can keep blood-sucking vampires at bay.
But other superstitions surround garlic’s protective qualities. Roman soldiers ate garlic before battles because they believed it gave them courage. Incans believed bulls wouldn’t charge anyone carrying garlic. In ancient Greece, Odysseus used garlic to keep Circe from turning him and his men into pigs.