The resin of the Commiphora tree. Bittersweet, smoky, and ancient.
Myrrh is harvested by cutting into the bark of the Commiphora tree, which grows across the arid lowlands of Somalia, Ethiopia, and the southern Arabian Peninsula. The tree bleeds a pale sap that hardens on contact with air into small, irregular amber-brown tears. Those tears are myrrh resin. Traded across the ancient world for over five thousand years — from the incense routes of the Arabian Peninsula to the temples of Egypt and the apothecaries of medieval Europe — it is one of the oldest aromatic materials still in active use.
The scent is distinctive: bittersweet, with a warm woody base and a faintly medicinal edge that deepens as it burns. It is not a soft or decorative smoke. It has weight to it, and a slow-moving presence that settles into a room over time.
This incense carries pure myrrh resin at Grade 1.1, hand-rolled in small batches using a recipe carried across generations. The natural resin base — which itself contains myrrh as a structural ingredient — supports and extends the principal oil, giving the smoke a fullness that opens gradually rather than arriving all at once.
How to use
Place the stick in a ceramic or stone holder. Light the tip and allow it to catch for thirty seconds. Blow gently until the flame subsides. The smoke will carry for approximately forty-five minutes.
Myrrh burns best in the late afternoon or evening, in a quiet room. It is not a background note — it occupies space and deserves attention. Allow ten to fifteen minutes for the resin to fully warm and the deeper character of the smoke to emerge. It pairs well with frankincense, which shares its ancient lineage and balances its bittersweet edge with a brighter, cleaner lift.
What is in it
Pure myrrh resin. Spring water, pure bamboo charcoal, sandalwood powder, vanilla powder, gum elemi, makko powder, tragacanth gum, Arabic gum, gum opoponax, gum labdanum, gum copal, mastic, gum dammar, myrrh resin, frankincense resin. No synthetic fragrance. No chemicals. No animal products.
Country of origin: Somalia and Ethiopia.
Vegan. Allergen free.
Format
Eight to ten sticks per pack. Length: 21 cm. Burn time: approximately 45 minutes per stick.
A note on Grade 1.1
Grade 1.1 carries a lighter oil load than Grade 1.2 or 1.3. For myrrh, this is the right point of entry. The resin's character — its bitterness, its depth, its ancient quality — comes through clearly at this grade. The smoke is full without being heavy, and the material is allowed to speak plainly. Those looking for greater density and duration will find it in the frankincense at Grade 1.1, or in the higher grades across the range.