Whether Buddhist temple, Indian ashram or European church - they all share the same scent: incense. To produce it, dried incense resin is usually smoked. Less known, however, is the essential oil of frankincense - yet it brings with it fascinating possibilities.

Amazingly versatile
Frankincense oil can be used in a variety of ways. The most obvious and common use is as a room fragrance. In a small bowl on a tea light, a pleasant spicy smell quickly spreads through the room. This is especially recommended during a little downtime. Perhaps you like to take an hour in the evening to read comfortably in an armchair? Or get up especially early in the morning to prepare for the day with a meditation or during yoga?

Incense oil can enrich such special moments. It not only creates a sensual atmosphere, but also helps you switch off. That's why essential oils are so popular in aromatherapy. Unlike incense resin, no harmful fine dust is produced during vaporization.

Frankincense oil is also popular as a balm on the skin because it is said to have skin-soothing properties. Therefore, it is ideal for targeted application on dry or cracked areas. Frankincense oil is also used as a supportive treatment for atopic dermatitis, psoriasis or acne. It is to alleviate both the symptoms such as itching and burning, and to promote the healing process.

Apart from that, of course, nothing speaks against an application out of pure pleasure: A relaxing massage after a long day at the office does good - especially with some frankincense oil. If you like, you can also apply a drop to your wrist to take the delicious scent with you through the day for a while. Worth knowing: Because essential oils themselves contain no fats, they evaporate without leaving any residue, do not become greasy on the skin and are therefore much less problematic for textiles than, for example, conventional massage oils.

This is how the fragrance gets into the bottle
Frankincense oil is found in the resin of the Boswellia tree. These gnarled, showy trees grow primarily in East Africa, the Arabian Peninsula and India. In rocky, dry wilderness, locals scratch the leafy bark of the trunks. In the process, the resin oozes out and dries in the air. Forest workers collect the rubber-like substance, and distillers use steam to separate the essential oils from the other components. And this is how it works: mills grind the dried resin, then it goes with water into large boilers that heat the brew. The steam dissolves the essential oils, which are then allowed to cool and drip off in a tube. Because the oil is water repellent, it can be easily skimmed off afterwards.

Frankincense is not all the same
It certainly plays a role at which time of year it is harvested and which Boswellia species it is. The first harvest of the year often yields resin that is still impure, and as the weeks go by it changes color from various shades of brown to milky white. Towards the end of the harvesting period, the highest quality product is obtained.

However, most resins can be used for incense oils without hesitation. Distillation purifies and concentrates them, followed by filtering and bottling. That being said, different species have also been found to be useful for different applications: Arabic varieties like Boswellia Sacra have a particularly spicy scent, making them ideal as incense. The Indian variety Boswellia Serrata, on the other hand, is the only one listed in the European Pharmacopoeia because its resin has a particularly high acid content. It is therefore mainly used as a basis for powder and capsules for ingestion. Nevertheless, it also contains the coveted aromatic oil.