Eye salve in Laodicea

The city of Laodicea was known for its extraordinary eye salve, as well as a medical school.  Knowing this historical fact sheds light on why the church in Laodicea would have been told that Jesus would give them salve to put on their eyes so they could truly see.  What is more, the Laodiceans also sold black wool, so Jesus would give them white clothes!  These tidbits of information exemplify the need to read commentaries or bible dictionaries when wanting to study the bible, as most of us won't readily pick up on some of these more culturally/historically relevant items that would help us identify the point of a given passage.