Items straight out of the Christmas Story and the Bible. Although the actual story in the Bible was written many years later, the fact that Frankincense and Myrrh were probable gifts is hard to deny in that area of the world. The picture above is of Frankincense (top) and Myrrh (bottom) directly out of the Middle East..
Frankincense is tapped from the very scraggly but hardy Boswellia tree through scraping the bark and allowing the exuded resins to bleed out and harden. These hardened resins are called tears. There are numerous species and varieties of frankincense trees, each producing a slightly different type of resin. Differences in soil and climate create even more diversity in the resin, even within the same species.
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Myrrh is a reddish-brown resinous material, the dried sap of the tree Commiphora myrrha, native to Yemen. H igh quality myrrh can be identified through the darkness and clarity of the resin. However, the best method of judging the resin's quality is by feeling the stickiness of freshly broken fragments directly to determine the fragrant-oil content of the myrrh resin. Many times Myhrr appears as a powder with small chunks included.
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The following pictures are of Myrrh and Frankincense as seen in the Market Places in Yemen. Neither of these items, because of their crumbly nature, would make into gemstone jewelry for wear, but many incase either substance in small bottles or silver pouches, and wear on necklaces and earrings.
Myrrh powder and chunks................... Frankincense chunks
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