Resin of one tree A medicinal salve grown from a 1,000-year-old seed found in a cave near Jerusalem may be the source. BibleAccording to a new study.
The strange seed, about 2 centimeters long, was discovered in a Jewish desert cave in the late 1980s. Between 993 AD and 1202 AD. After years of trying to grow the plant, the researchers created a seedling they named “Respect”.
DNA analysis suggests that the tree belongs to a unique Camiphorus genus found in Africa, Madagascar and the Arabian Peninsula and known for its aromatic resins. Independent.
The researchers suspected that “Seva” might be “Judaic Balm” or “Ointment of Judea”It was cultivated exclusively in the desert region of the southern Levant in biblical times.
References to the “balm of Judea” are found in the literature of the Hellenistic, Roman-Byzantine, and post-classical periods between the 4th and 8th centuries AD.
Precious resin – balsam
Resin of wood, as it is called in biblical texts “sorry” (balm), highly prized in the ancient world and exported throughout the Roman Empire. Previous research shows that it was used as a perfume, incense, cataract remedy, anti-venom, and in the embalming process. Despite its value, it seems to have disappeared from the Levant by the 9th century.
A new DNA study published in the journal contacts Biology It has been shown that “Sheba” may have been used in biblical times as the root of the aromatic tree “balsam of Judea”.
The “Seva” tree grew from a 1,000-year-old seed
Dr Sarah Challen
Researchers have found that the leaves of the saplings contain biologically active compounds Anti-inflammatory properties. ‘Seva’ has yet to produce flowers and fruit, which researchers believe will help them compare with their modern cousins. They feel that the current growing environment may not be conducive to its flowering and reproduction.
“Despite these limitations, an ancient Commiphorus seed sprout from the Judean Desert shows the first evidence of its presence in the region some 1,000 years ago, and its valuable “sori” resin identified with a native tree or shrub associated with medicinal uses in the Bible,” the researchers note.
