The Life of Jesus in Harmony | Index

frankincense

Gal'banum (gal'ba-num; Heb. lebona, "whiteness").

A gum resin with a pungent balsamic odor (Ex 30:34). It was one of the constituents of the sacred incense. Two ferulas, F. galbaniflua, Boiss, et Buhse, and F. rubricaulis, Boiss., both growing in Persia, are believed to be the sources of the gum.

It is used in medicine as an antispasmodic. It is a greasy, sticky, granulated resin, presenting a whitish appearance at first, but afterward changing to yellow, having a pungent odor and taste, and which, when mixed with fragrant substances, has the effect of increasing the odor and fixing it longer.