History of Use and Trade of Agarwood

Abstract

Aromatics originating from the resin-infused infected wood of the Aquilaria and Gyrinops genera have distinct and valued fragrances. Resin formation occurs as a response to internal injury and/or infections in the stems of the agarwood tree. The incenses and perfumes that are produced from agarwood have been valued for centuries and used by many cultures for spiritual, opulent, and aphrodisiac purposes. Agarwood is highly revered in the seminal texts of Hinduism, Christianity, Buddhism, and Islam. As early as 1400 B.C.E., agarwood was described as a fragrant product in Sanskrit texts, and in 65 B.C.E., Dioscorides detailed several medical applications for agarwood. Knowledge of human-induced agarwood formation was recorded in China as early as 300 C.E., where it was known that cutting into a tree would lead to a color change in its internal tissues within a year of the injury as a consequence of resin development. There is historical evidence of international trade in agarwood between the producing (tropical southeastern Asia) and consuming (Middle East, India, China, and Japan) regions of the world. Agarwood has been consumed primarily as incense with the burning of wood chips directly or as an important ingredient for powdered incense blends. The aromatic qualities of agarwood are influenced by the species and variety of the two genera, geographic location, its branch, trunk and root origin, length of time since infection, and methods of harvesting and processing. The subtle but numerous variations in agarwood properties led to the development of systems for product classification and description in several consumer countries. This paper reviews the uses and trade of agarwood and its social, political, and economic significance in human history.

Agarwood Induction: Current Developments and Future Perspectives

“…Efforts to artificially induce the agarwood formation can be traced back to as early as 300 C.E. in the Chinese history, where it was recorded that resin deposition accompanied with color changes of internal tissues can happen within a year by injuring the trees (López-Sampson and Page, 2018). Besides mechanical wounding approach, the use of chemical, insect and pathogen-inducing techniques is increasingly common in the agarwood industry nowadays (Liu Y. et al, 2013; Mohamed et al, 2014; Kalita, 2015).…”

Solvent used in extraction process of agarwood: a systematic review

“…Sanskrit text has mentioned that agarwood as an aromatic product since 1400 B.C.E. In 65 B.C.E., Dioscorides, a first-century Greek physician, botanist and pharmacologist has described the use of agarwood extracts in medicine (López-Sampson and Page, 2018). Agarwood has been used as an ethnomedicine in countries in Southeast Asian, China and Bangladesh for joint pain, inflammatory-related ailments, and diarrhea.…”

Aloeswood In; Hadith, Current Distribution And Trend Of Research Based On PMC

“…Among Malays, aloeswood is named gaharu which has been known among items used in folk medicine (Hussain, 2015). There is historical evidence of international trade in agarwood between the producing tropical South-eastern Asia and the consuming Middle East, as well as the South and East Asian regions of the world (López-Sampson & Page, 2018). Interestingly, for the binomial nomenclature Aquilaria malaccensis; the Latin generic name Aquilaria means eagle, after its common name in Malacca -eagle wood, while the Latin specific name malaccensis means of Malacca, referring to one locality in the natural distribution of this species, as defined by National Parks: Let's Make Singapore Our Garden (2013).…”