MYRRHA. 



141 



the Somali country, but only at a considerable distance from the sea- 

 shore. Its exudation is the coarse mjTrh, habaghadi o£ the Somalis and 

 Arabs and " Baisabole " of the Indians. 



Hildebrandt has collected the didthin, or didin as he writes, in the 



Mountains 



growing on sunny 



He has ascertained that it is identical with Ehrenberg s tree, Bcdsamo- 



My 



It is a low tree of crippled appearance, attain- 



ing not more than 3 metres. This species must therefore be pointed 

 out as the source of true myrrh of the European commerce. 



History^(See also further on, Bissabol). Myrrh has been used 

 from the earliest times together with olibanum as a constituent of 

 incense,^ perfumes, and unguents. It was an ingredient of the holy oil 

 used in the Jewish ceremonial as laid down by Moses: and it was also 

 one of the numerous components of the celebrated Kyphi of the 

 Egyptians, a preparation used in fumigations, medicine, and the process 

 of embalming, and of which there were several varieties. 



In the previous article we have pointed out (p. 137) several early 

 references to mp-rh in connection with olibanum, in which it is 

 observable that the myrrh (when weights are mentioned) is always in 

 the smaller quantity. Of the use of the drug in mediDsval Europe there 

 are few notices, but they tend to show that the commodity was rare and 



precious. 



mvrrh is recommended 



Leech- 



books^ to be used with frankincense in the superstitious medical practice 

 of the 1 1 th century . ~ -..,.. . ..-01....... „„ 



Monastery 



Schaffhausen, Switzerland, we also find that, apparently in the 11th 



yrrh 



well 



"judicium aqu^e bullientis."^ ^._ ^ ... 



"Physicians of Myddfai" in the 13th century. 



olibanum were used in ordeals in the 



Wei 



Wardrobe 



entry 



it be 



ing 



Myr 



^eoffroi de rieuri,^ master of the wardrobe (argentier) to Philippe le 

 ^ong, king of France, where record is made of the purchase of—" 4 

 onees d'estorat calmite" (see Styrax) " et mierre (myrrh) . . . . encenz 

 f laudanon," (Ladanum, the resin of Cistus creticus L.)— for the 

 funeral of John, posthumous son of Louis X., a.d. 1316. 



. ^old, silver, silk, precious stones, pearls, camphor, musk, myrrh, and 

 spices are enumerated « as the presents which the Khan of Cathay sent 

 <f Pope Benedict XII. at Avignon about the year 1342. The mjrvh 

 ^^tuied for this circuitous route to Europe ^ was doubtless that of the 



lK^f'^^.\ ^^' "i- 6; Genes, xliii. 11; 



S "; 'li,\^-^^- ^i-3^ ; John xix. 39 ; 



» r [• ^^' Proverbs vii. 17. 



^uSf "'. '^"'•'■^^'' ^"- (1S59) 187. 



*ro6(8^^""''^""""« Co'^trarotulatoris Gar- 



?^i.and27' S^"'-'^^^-. Lond. 1787. pp. 

 h tlip '^'•~-^nG custom 13 still observed 



sovereigns of England, and the 



Queen's oblation of gold, frankincense, and 

 myrrh is still annually presented on the 

 Feast of Epiphany in the Chapel Royal in 



Loudon. _ T „ t , • 



» Doiiet d'Arcq,- ComjpUs Oe I Argentine 



des 7-oifi (le France, 1851. 19. 

 « Yule, Cathay and the way thither, u. 



7 For the costly presents iu question 

 never reached their destinatwn, having been 

 all plundered by the way ! 



