[Trygve] Harris first came to Oman in 2006 to source frankincense for her aromatic essential oil store in New York. “But even in Oman, I could only get Somalia oil, not higher-quality Omani oil. Nobody was distilling it for sale back then. Not even Amouage!” she recalled, speaking of Oman’s top perfume company, which specialises in producing luxury frankincense fragrances (a 100ml bottle of Amouage perfume with frankincense base notes costs £283).In 2011, she relocated to Salalah, Dhofar’s capital, and set up Enfleurage.
— From Oman's Ancient Biblical Scent, a profile of Omani frankincense at BBC Travel. (And see also, part 1 and 2 of our profile of Harris.)
Thank you, Robin, very interesting article although it’s not good news as frankincense seems to be going the way of Indian Mysore sandalwood.
Seriously, it is very sad. I wonder if the frankincense oil I buy is even real frankincense. If it is, it’s sad that it doesn’t cost more than it does.
Also thanking you, Robin, for sharing this article. It’s very fascinating and informative but ultimately sad. It also puts me in the mood to either burn frankincense incense or wear a perfume dominated by it today.
Australia jumped on the bandwagon and started sandalwood plantations a few decades ago. I wonder where in America those trees that make frankincense would grow?
I wonder too! I know there are efforts by several companies to encourage more sustainable harvesting methods — as I understand it, overharvesting of wild trees is one of the big problems. But I don’t know a thing about cultivation.