Damar and Copal 
D AMAR is the Malay name for resin or for 
a torch made of resin. Large numbers of 
plants produce resins which are of more 
or less importance commercially. A few of the 
more important or better known resins are dealt 
with here. Following the practice of the European 
markets, the terms copal and damar may be used 
to indicate our two most important groups of resins. 
COPAL. 
This term is not used in the Malay region. It is, 
'however, used in the European markets to indicate 
those hard resins which have a relatively high 
melting point, are relatively resistant to various 
solvents, and furnish a varnish which dries with a 
hard surface. There is only one important member 
of this group in British Malaya. 
Damar Minyak or Damar Sanum. 
This is derived from the tree known by the same 
name in the Malay Peninsula, Agathis alba (Lamk.) 
Foxw., which is widely distributed throughout the 
Malayan region, usually on the higher hills. It is 
sometimes found, in the Malay Peninsula, at as low 
an elevation as one thousand feet above sea level. 
The tree grows to a very large size and the resin may 
be collected from fresh wounds in the bark, but is 
more often collected from old wounds where it has 
hardened and crystallized, or from deposits in the 
ground at the base of the tree. This last is called 
