Lychnis--Why Lamp Flowers?

Here is a word root question about the name of a 
Mediterranean plant. (Really I suppose it is a question 
of Mediterranean historical economic botany, but I hope 
not too far off topic.) 

For a writing project, I have been researching the 
source of the name Lychnis. The source is the Greek word 
for lamp, "lychnos." That is settled. But some 
reverences on plant names say the word was used because 
the flowers (probably of L. chalcedonica) were so 
bright, while others claim that it is because the hairy 
leaves of some member of the genus were used as lamp 
wicks. One source even claims that it was the leaf hairs 
that were used for lamp wicks. I don't know what 
Linnaeus was thinking when he chose the name, but if 
leaves of the plant weren't used as lamp wicks, that 
reason can't be right. So the key question is whether 
the ancient Greeks really used the leaves for lamp 
wicks. My research has not turned up the answer. Anyone 
have any information or know an ancient history expert 
who would know? 

Pam Peirce
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