gums-resins-msg – 9/9/07
Gums and resins used in period and how they were used. Modern sources. Camphor, myrrh, frankinsence, mastic, Gum tragacanth.
NOTE: See also the files: spices-msg, herbs-cooking-msg, p-herbals-msg, amber-msg, amber-buying-art, spice-mixes-msg, wood-finishes-msg.
************************************************************************
NOTICE -
This file is a collection of various messages having a common theme that I have collected from my reading of the various computer networks. Some messages date back to 1989, some may be as recent as yesterday.
This file is part of a collection of files called Stefan's Florilegium. These files are available on the Internet at: http://www.florilegium.org
I have done a limited amount of editing. Messages having to do with separate topics were sometimes split into different files and sometimes extraneous information was removed. For instance, the message IDs were removed to save space and remove clutter.
The comments made in these messages are not necessarily my viewpoints. I make no claims as to the accuracy of the information given by the individual authors.
Please respect the time and efforts of those who have written these messages. The copyright status of these messages is unclear at this time. If information is published from these messages, please give credit to the originator(s).
Thank you,
Mark S. Harris AKA: THLord Stefan li Rous
Stefan at florilegium.org
************************************************************************
From: fp458 at cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Elise A. Fleming)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: Plate that you can ea
Date: 10 Dec 1994 10:02:03 GMT
Organization: Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio (USA)
Gum tragacanth, cheapest source, is Penn Herb. Toll free number
is 1-800-523-9971 (presumably for orders over $15). For orders
under $15, for information, or if you're calling from the 215
area code it's 215-925-3336. Tragacanth gum is #630. It comes
in powder form. One ounce is $2.35, much cheaper than the price
from Sweet Celebrations in Minneapolis. Four ounces is $7.25
and one pound is $27.50. There is a shipping charge. Penn Herb
sells all other kinds of herbs and herbal items. They say they
are "Pennsylvania's Largest Medicinal Herb House."
Elise/Alys Katharine
Date: Mon, 15 Sep 1997 11:19:57 -0600 (MDT)
From: Mary Morman <memorman at oldcolo.com>
Subject: SC - Gum Tragacanth
I was pleased to find gum tragacanth being sold by the very reputable
Dragonmarsh at Worldcon over Labor Day. You can contact them at:
DragonMarsh
[ Stefan 9/9/07 - here is info for buying stuff at DragonMarsh. The writer lists them at 6th street. They have moved around the corner.
new info-
DragonMarsh
3643 University Ave.
Riverside, CA 92501
951 276-1116
www.dragonmarsh.com ]
Elaina
Date: Mon, 15 Sep 1997 16:26:10 -0500 (CDT)
From: alysk at ix.netcom.com (Elise Fleming )
Subject: SC - Gums Arabic and Tragacanth
Greetings! (Drat digest format where it's harder to quote from posts!)
Someone mentioned getting gum arabic and thought other names for it
were gum tragacanth, gum dragon, etc. No, and no. Gum arabic isn't
gum tragacanth. While both are used in cookery, gum tragacanth's
primary use in period seems to have been in making sugar paste (modern
day gum paste). You can't substitute gum arabic for gum tragacanth. I
would hypothesize that the reverse would also be true, that one
shouldn't substitute gum tragacanth for gum arabic. One of
tragacanth's uses is as a strengthener. Arabic has been used to mix
with colorants so that one can paint them onto foods or confections.
When using one or the other, see what the recipe says, then use that
one. I've been in the presence of sugar paste made with gum arabic.
'Tain't the same thing!
Alys Katharine
Date: Sun, 25 Jan 1998 21:32:07 EST
From: LrdRas <LrdRas at aol.com>
Subject: Re: SC - camphor
rsve60 at email.sps.mot.com writes:
<< What *is* camphor? I thought it was a petroleum product. How would
they have produced it in the Middle Ages? How else was it used in
the Middle Ages?
Stefan li Rous >>
What is camphor?
Camphor is a gum resin produced by the camphor tree. The petroleum based
product you refer to is "Camphor Oil" .....a modern medicinal dating back to
the 19th century CE used to reduce the symptoms of upper respiratory distress
during cold and flu season especially on young children. It is applied to the
chest area and the rising fumes make breathing easier. It is oftentimes more
effective than others forms of medicine such as antihistamines.
Ras
Date: Mon, 26 Jan 1998 03:51:32 +0000
From: James and/or Nancy Gilly <KatieMorag at worldnet.att.net>
Subject: Re: SC - camphor
At 21:59 25-1-98 +0000, Stefan li Rous wrote:
>What *is* camphor? I thought it was a petroleum product. How would
>they have produced it in the Middle Ages? How else was it used in
>the Middle Ages?
Says the *Britannica*:
camphor, an organic compound of penetrating, somewhat
musty aroma, used for many centuries as a component of incense
and as a medicinal. Modern uses of camphor have been as a
plasticizer for cellulose nitrate and as an insect repellent,
particularly for moths. The molecular formula is C10H16O
[C-ten H-sixteen O].
Camphor occurs in the camphot laurel, *Cinnamomum camphora*,
common in China, Taiwan, and Japan....
(*Encyclopaedia Britannica*, 15th edition, Vol II, p 492. Copyright 1977 by
Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.)
Alasdair mac Iain
Date: Mon, 26 Jan 1998 08:58:41 -0600 (CST)
From: jeffrey s heilveil <heilveil at students.uiuc.edu>
Subject: Re: SC - camphor
Camphor is the root of the camphry plant, ground. It can be mixed with
alcohol to make a tincture, and then mixed with a thickner to create an
ointment. It is a cheap and easy way to teach elementary herbalism, and I
made it a long time ago in an intro Botany course.
Bogdan
Date: Tue, 31 Mar 1998 21:15:35 EST
From: LrdRas <LrdRas at aol.com>
Subject: Re: SC - spices vs. herbs?
acrouss at gte.net writes:
<< frankincense and myrrh >>
IIRC< both are plant products. Frankincense is the resin of an aromatic Asian
or African tree and myrrh is a fragrant gummy substance with a bitter taste
which is used in medicines, perfumes and incense in modern times. There are
period Middle Eastern recipes which use it as a food ingredient. It is
obtained from a shrub that grows in Arabia and East Africa. I do not have my
plant manuals at hand right now but will look up the scientific names if you
want them..
Ras
Date: Tue, 31 Mar 1998 16:03:59 -0800
From: david friedman <ddfr at best.com>
Subject: SC - Mastic (was: My entry to Queen's Prize Tourney)
At 8:08 PM -0500 3/29/98, Lady Beatrix of Tanet wrote:
>Many Thanks, but I have one question: What is Mastic?
Mastic or gum mastic is a resin used as a seasoning in Islamic cooking; you
use it in very small quantities, say 1/16 teaspoon per 1 or two pounds of
meat. The taste suggests turpentine to us. In very small quantities it
adds an interesting tang to a dish, but it doesn't take much to make the
dish inedible. To find it, try a Middle Easter, Iranian, or Indian grocery
store, or a specialty spice place. It looks like little pale
yellowish/tannish blobs.
Elizabeth/Betty Cook
[Submitted by: "Philippa Alderton" <phlip at bright.net>]
From: Gaylin Walli <g.walli at infoengine.com>
To: herbalist at Ansteorra.ORG
Subject: Re: HERB - Resins
Date: Tuesday, November 03, 1998 2:19 PM
Raisya asked:
>I bought frankinsence and myrrh at Pennsic this year, but didn't have a chance
>to label them immediately, and now I've forgotten which is which. Does anyone
>here know? One is yellow, the shade of butter, the other is brownish, the
>color of a darkish honey. I think the yellow is frankinsence and the brown is
>myrrh, but I'm not sure.
The red-brown one is the myrrh. The yellow one is the frankinsence.
References:
"[Myrrh] flows as a pale yellow liquid, but hardens to a reddish-brown mass,
being found in commerce in tears of many sizes, the average being that of
a walnut."
(http://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/m/myrrh-66.html)
"When the milk-like juice which exudes has hardened by exposure to the
air, the incision is deepened. In about three months the [Frankincense]
resin has attained the required degree of consistency, hardening into
yellowish 'tears.'"
(http://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/f/franki31.html)
Jasmine
Jasmine de Cordoba, Midrealm, g.walli at infoengine.com
[Submitted by: "Philippa Alderton" <phlip at bright.net>]
From: N.D.Wederstrandt <nweders at mail.utexas.edu>
To: herbalist at Ansteorra.ORG
Subject: Re: HERB - Resins
Date: Tuesday, November 03, 1998 4:10 PM
Not necessarily. Different grades of frankincense are different colors.
Ethiopean frankincense is a very bright golden yellow and is getting harder
to find because the wars over in the Middle East have caused the groves to
be burnt. Arabian frankincense is a mixture and can range from dull gold
with bright yellow bits to darkish brown.... Indian frankincense is the
darkest and is the most common.... It often is cut with other types of
resins. I have an Organic Chemistry Manual that explains the types but it
is at home and this week I'm been off list dealing with Laurel's Prize
Tourney. The difference I have always found is that myrrh is darker and
has a very bitter taste to it. Frankincense is less bitter and even the
dark is not as dark as myrrh. Smell wise - myrrh always has a bitter edge
to it.
BTW, ethiopean has the cleanest and brightest scent to it....It is also the
prettiest.
Clare
[Submitted to the Florilegium by: "Philippa Alderton" <phlip at bright.net>]
From: Gaylin Walli <g.walli at infoengine.com>
To: herbalist at Ansteorra.ORG
Subject: Re: HERB - 'syropp of ela campane'
Date: Wednesday, November 04, 1998 9:29 AM
Phlip asked:
>Any ideas, folks?
This is how I would look at it.
'syropp of ela campane' would probably be a syrup of the plant
elecampane, often called Elfwort or Scabwort. The botanical of
this plant is Inula helenium (L.) I think. One of the major
constituents of the plant is the volitale oil "helenin" which
is sometimes called "elecampane camphor." Camphor, throughout
history, has been used to treat the symptoms of any of the
numerous kinds of arthritis, including rheumatoid arthritis.
An excellent write-up on Elecampane can be found in M. Grieve's
(OOP) herbal online at
http://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/e/elecam07.html
and this writeup includes pointers to period sources (including
Gerard, Culpepper, and others) which may be of use to the SCAdian
or recreator in tracking down the origins of the syrup's creation.
Jasmine
Jasmine de Cordoba, Midrealm, g.walli at infoengine.com
Date: Wed, 17 Feb 1999 16:41:50 -0600 (CST)
From: alysk at ix.netcom.com (Elise Fleming)
Subject: SC - Re: Recipe from Murrell
Lucretzia wrote:
>By Gum-dragon I would say they mean Dragonsblood, which is today and
>has been since ancient times, an East Indian shrub known as Dracoena
>draco, and the pigment is the dried resin sap of the plant.
I disagree. Gum-dragon is gum tragacanth in modern life, and is used
in sugar paste recipes as part of the ingredients. It is identified as
"a gum obtained from various Asian or Easst European leguminous plants
(genus Astragalus, esp. A. gummifer) that swells in water and is used
in the arts and in pharmacy." It is not a pigment and has no coloring
of its own. In modern gum paste, substitutions for gum tragacanth are
used such as gum karaya, which is cheaper, but has a slight pinkish
cast.
Alys Katharine
Date: Sun, 12 Sep 1999 11:48:45 -0500
From: Roberta R Comstock <froggestow at juno.com>
To: sca-arts at raven.cc.ukans.edu
Subject: Re: Mastic
On Sat, 11 Sep 1999 18:35:30 -0500 (CDT) <timbeck at ix.netcom.com> writes:
>Does anyone have the botanical name for the "mastic" bush? Just
>currious...
>
>Timothy
Mastic is an aromatic resin obtained from a small anacardiaceous
evergreen tree, _Pistacia Lentiscus_, native to the Mediterranean
region: used in making varnish. (Random House College Dictionary)
This plant family is the same one that includes pistacio nuts, cashews,
sumaca and poison ivy.
Hertha
Date: Sun, 12 Sep 1999 00:34:50 -0300
From: dwilson at nbnet.nb.ca (dwilson)
To: <sca-arts at raven.cc.ukans.edu>
Subject: Re: Mastic
> Does anyone have the botanical name for the "mastic" bush? Just currious...
> Timothy
Pistacia lentiscus. And a good small article at
http://www.tau.ac.il/~melros/Questions/Hebrew.html
Sheepstealer
Date: Mon, 28 Feb 2000 10:19:18 EST
From: Seton1355 at aol.com
Subject: SC - MASTIC
Well, one positive aspect to this whole bruhaha in Trimaris about feasting is
that it has spured me on to start looking up recipes again.
I recently asked what *mastic* is. Well, I found the answer!
Phillipa Seton
THE FOOD OF THE WESTERN WORLD An Encyclopedia of Food from North America and
Europe. Theodora FitzGibbon
Quadrangle / New York Times Book Co. 1976
MASTIC
(Pistacia lentiscus)
An evergreen resinous shrub native to Southern Europe, the sap of which is
used as a culinary flavoring. .... The gum tastes fairly like liquorice, is
obtained by making cuts into the tree bark.
Date: Tue, 29 Feb 2000 10:47:09 -0600
From: david friedman <ddfr at best.com>
Subject: RE: SC - REC: BAID MASUS
Phillipa Seton said
> For tonight's supper I made **Baid Masus** from His Grace's Miscellany. I
> had never made it before. It was delicious! A very straight forward recipe
> and easy to make. I didn't have any *mastic* however. (I hope everyone got
> my previous post on mastic - a liquorice flavored sap)
I believe the information you posted said that mastic was the sap,
and the bark was liquorice flavored. Mastic doesn't taste in the
least like liquorice. More like turpentine (think retsina for a
similar effect in something consumable), which is why we use it in
very small quantities.
David/Cariadoc
From: "Elise Fleming" <alysk at ix.netcom.com>
To: <sca-cooks at ansteorra.org>
Date: Thu, 28 Jun 2001 11:59:07 -0500
Subject: [Sca-cooks] Gum Tragacanth Sources
Greetings. If my old memory works right, it seems there was a
discussion that gum tragacanth wasn't "findable" in the US anymore.
Master Aiden, from my local group, found two sources for me right
away and here they are for you.
http://www.bakingshop.com/sugarcraft/gum.htm
http://beryls.safeshopper.com/142/cat142.htm?772
He noted: "I've also discovered that it's also used for
leatherworking, incense, bookbinding, and making pastels,
curious..."
The "Beryl's" site has a pound of gum dragon for $30, plus shipping
and handling. This corresponds well to the price some 10 years ago
of $30 which included $5 shipping/handling from Penn Herb, which
apparantly no longer carries gum tragacanth. If you want to make
period sugarpaste, you need this stuff. They also sell it in
smaller quantities.
Alys Katharine
From: jenne at fiedlerfamily.net
Date: Tue, 24 Jul 2001 17:02:14 -0400 (EDT)
To: <sca-cooks at ansteorra.org>
Subject: RE: [Sca-cooks] online glossary
> Benzoin
Styrax Benzoin, a tree resin. Now available as powdered resin and a
tincture. A perfume fixative. AKA gum benzoin, benjamin.
OED:
1. A dry and brittle resinous substance, with a fragrant
odour and slightly aromatic taste, obtained from the
Styrax benzoin, a tree of Sumatra, Java, etc. It is used in
the preparation of benzoic acid, in medicine, and
extensively in perfumery. For scientific distinction it is
now termed gum benzoin. Also called by popular
corruption BENJAMIN.
1558 WARDE Alexis' Secr. (1568) 3a, An unce of Bengewine. 1562
TURNER Herbal II. 30b, Belzoin or Benzoin is the rosin of a tree.
1601 HOLLAND Pliny I. 480 The herbe..(which beareth the gum
Benjoine) grew there first. 1616 BULLOKAR, Benzwine, a sweet
smelling gumme. 1616 SURFL. & MARKH. Countr. Farm 484 Your
hard gums, such as is frankincense, benjouin..and waxe. 1653
WALTON Angler (Arb.) 42 There is an herb Benione, which..makes
him (the Otter) to avoid that place. 1658 ROWLAND Mouffet's Theat.
Ins. 1000 Asa dulcis, Wine and Honey, or Benzoin dissolved in warm
water. 1671 GREW Anat. Plants I. 17 Benzoine, by Distillation
[yieldeth] Oyl; by Vstion, white Flowers. 1834 J. GRIFFIN Chem.
Recr. 117 Gum benzoin (or benjamin) is a prime constituent of
fumigating pastiles. 1875 JEVONS Money vii. 28 Cubes of benzoin,
gum or beeswax..are other peculiar forms of currency.
-- Jadwiga Zajaczkowa
Date: Sun, 14 Apr 2002 20:22:53 -0700 (PDT)
From: Philippa Alderton <phlip_u at yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: [Sca-cooks] Re: Mastic for Stefan.
To: sca-cooks at ansteorra.org
OK, Stefan, I've been looking through my cookbooks, as
I promised, and here we go.
From Cariadoc's Mexcellany, the cooking section, the
following recipes contain mastic:
Burinya
Tuffahiya
Madira
Raihaniya
Rutabiya
Labaniya
A Baghdad Cookery Book
Sour dishes
Batd Masus
Zirbaj
Nirbaj
Hisrimiya
Halawiya
Rummaniya
Sumaqiya
Limuwiya
Mamquriya
Hubaishiya
Mishmishiya
Narenjiya
Narsirk
Milk dishes
Madira
Mujazza'a
Ukaike
Masliya
Plain dishes
Isfankiya
Rukhamiya
Aruz Mufalfal
Itriya
Muhallibiya
Fried and Dry dishes
Anbariya
Mishmishiya
Safarjaliya
Narenjiya
Fahtiya
Mudaqqaqat Hamida
Simple and sweet dishes
(on these, the "usual" in parentheses following means
that the recipe said "the usual seasonings", and that
similar recipes preceding and following all had mastic
in them. I didn't include any saying usual seasonings
otherwise.)
Burniya
Basaliya
Raihaniya
Nurjisiya
Nujumiya (usual)
Manbusha
Madfuna (usual)
Buraniya al-Qar
Khudairiya
Makhfiya
Dinariya
Rutabiya
Mugarressa Harisa al-Araz
Mudaqqaqat Sadhija
The last was simply titled "Chicken dishes" and
included a base spice blend, which included mastic,
and then discussed several variations.
Harisa and baked dishes
Harisa (usual)
Kabis
Sukhtar (or Kibi)
Tafshil
Akar
Fried, soused and turned dishes, pies, etc
Baid Masus (there were several dishes which stated