Opopanax Resin
(Sweet Myrrh)
COMMON NAME Standardized: sweet myrrh
- BOTANICAL NAME
- Commiphora sp.
- Plant Family: Burseraceae
INTRODUCTION Opopanax is a flowering perennial, producing small clusters of yellow flowers. It is native to Southern Europe and parts of the Middle East, preferring warm weather, which enables it to produce greater qualities of its fragrant resin. To extract the resin, the opopanax is cut at the base of the plant, allowing it to seep out. Afterwards, it is dried in the sun, producing hard, golden colored chunks of resin.
SUMMARY Often burned as incense, opopanax has a warm, earthy scent. The essential oil is used as a fixative in perfumery. In biblical times, opopanax was applied for minor wounds, but has since fallen out of disuse medicinally.
- REFERENCES
- http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16170385
- http://botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/o/opopon10.html