Myrrh Gum Resin.

A charcoal disc glowing in a dish, a lump of dark resin set upon it, and the room slowly filling with something warm, balsamic and slightly sweet. Unheated, myrrh smells faintly medicinal and sharp; on the coal it is transformed, and that transformation is why it has been prized for so long.

These are reddish-brown lumps of raw myrrh, the bitter gum resin of Commiphora myrrha, trees native to the Horn of Africa, wild-harvested by hand in Somaliland. Myrrh was burned in funerary rites and temple offerings across the ancient Near East, and the Egyptians prized it above nearly every other resin for embalming, keeping its scent for solemn occasions. It is the eternal companion of frankincense and its opposite in mood: heavier, darker, more somber. Folklore has paired the two as smoke for the graver hours, one resin balancing the other.

Details

• Resin: Raw myrrh, Commiphora myrrha
• Origin: Wild-harvested by hand in Somaliland
• Form: Natural, ungraded lumps; size, texture and shade vary from batch to batch

How to use

Burn a small lump on a lit charcoal disc, alone for a deep, somber smoke or with frankincense for something more complex. A little goes further than the size of the lump suggests. Sold as a curiosity, with no medical or scientific claims.

For the solemn hours, and the remembering they hold.