The Mughal emperors took great pleasure in beautifying their surroundings with magnificent gardens, great architecture with lavish furnishings of fine imported woods, gold and silver. The interiors of the royal court were furnished with exquisite drapes of velvet and brocades, hand woven wall to wall rugs with sumptuous seating areas and intricately hand crafted screens for privacy and decor.
The scenting of the interior was equally important, and Shah Akbar had sensers continuously releasing the scent of resin bakhoors, agarwood or ambergris into the court-halls. For personal beautification, perfuming of the body with sweet smelling attars was part of the daily routine, and rich scents were composed by the Shah himself. This practice created a flourishing distillation and attar-making industry, which was crafting complex scents from highly valued imported ingredients, such as deer musk, civet, ambergris, incense resins and sandalwood.
A noble essence of times past... Anbar Al Ambre e Ashab
The Oriental rich aromatics of Mughal origin come together in this noble Mukhallat of sweet ambergris and royal amber. Veiling top notes of delicate blossoms of Bakhol and Magnolia opens the gate to warm spicy notes of Cinnamon and a hint of Clove. A soft vanillic sweetness introduces the oceanic, slightly earthy-musky Ambre gris which complements the exquisite Amber beautifully... the character of the essence is highlighted by true Deer Musk and Civet, for longevity and strength. An intoxicating, lush essence fit for Royalty... offered as a scent-sational treat for your olfactory pleasure.
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WHAT IS AMBERGRIS
Due to the sperm whale's inability to digest squid beaks, it produces ambergris, an intestinal secretion to protect the stomach lining. The secretion hardens within the body and gets expelled as waste, and can be found floating in the waters where the sperm whales reside; off the coasts of Africa, New Zealand, the Middle East and South East Asia. Ambergris has become a rare commodity and one of the most sought after substances in the world. Since the demand of rare ambergris far outweighs the production - only a mere 1% of the male sperm whales produce ambergris - finding genuine ambergris washed ashore will soon be a thing of the past.
HOW IS AMBERGRIS USED
Ambergris has been used extensively historically and culturally since ancient times. The Egyptians of yesterday burned ambergris as incense, while in modern Egypt ambergris is used for scenting cigarettes. The ancient Chinese called ambergris "dragon's spittle fragrance". During the Middle Ages, Europeans used ambergris as a medication for headaches, colds, epilepsy, and other ailments. At the time of the Black Death in Europe, people believed that carrying a ball of ambergris could help prevent them from getting the plague. This was because the fragrance covered the smell of the air which was believed to be the cause of plague. Ambergris in different forms has also been used as a flavoring for food, and some people consider it an aphrodisiac, and is therefore one of the main ingredients in modern perfumery.
WHAT DOES AMBERGRIS SMELL LIKE
Ambergris has an unusual odor which is difficult to explain to anyone who has never had the pleasure of its sensual aroma. Ambergris is often described as being musky and having a sweet earthy aroma unlike any other, or a mossy fragrance reminiscent of the damp forest floor. Depending on the quality of the ambergris there can be a great variation in the fragrance. Poor quality or fresh ambergris (which is black and sticky) is fairly offensive in fragrance. If you can imagine scented cow dung you will be on the right track. Many people expect ambergris to have a very strong or foul odor, but this is not the case. In general, lighter coloured pieces of ambergris have a subtle, pleasant smell. The base animal (manure) odor fades as the ambergris cures. However, the white and grey varieties, in particular, possess the subtle, sweet addictive aroma that beach combing dreams are made of.
WHAT IS AMBER OIL
Amber is a mixture of natural herbs, woods, gums and spices with its core essence originating from the tree liquidamber orientalis, a deciduous tree. A cross section of the tree which has been invaded by fungus causes the tree to react and in a defense mechanism resulting sap production. Another method of cultivation where a cross section of the tree has been artificially induced with fungus which results in resin production. This section of the tree, a semi solid mass laden with sap is removed and distilled and a yellowish liquid is extracted. The resin compound is known as succinic acid which is a chief component in amber essential oil. Although this liquid component is derived from the tree itself, it is not the final product. The final product undergoes manufacturing in which other essential components are added.
Historically,
amber oil was produced for the purpose of ayurvedic medicine and at some point in time became an ingredient used in perfume. The final product was a closely guarded secret from family to family and region to region, meaning that amber oil produced in the North may smell completely different than of one in the West, or even different than one produced within the same comparable region, as final characteristics may depend on the 'Attarwallah', or perfume master, or in Arabic 'Attarji'.
WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN AMBERS
The differences may vary from region to region and ingredient compositions, it's unlikely to say one is better than another, as the final product is determined by the hand of its chief composer. However, color differences are often visible - some being reddish, others orange, fire engine red and black. The olfactory notes are that of camphor, balsamic, slightly sour vanillic herbal as in spikenard and grassy woody mossy as in vetiver, floral herbaceous as in saffron, vanillic as in vanilla and labdanum, frankincense and styrax.
WHAT IS THE BASE OIL FOR AMBER
The base oil often varies, as you may find varying degrees of preference or knowledge and availability, with some claiming safflower seed oil base, others using mineral oil. My personal preference is a Sandalwood Mysore base oil which attenuates the fragrance thereby reducing the sourness and adds a fine woody sweet characteristic to the final product.
IS AMBER AND AMBERGRIS THE SAME THING
No, they are not the same thing; amber is a resin and concoction of a number of essential essences, composed to create the final product, while AMBERGRIS is a semi solid waxy substance ELIMINATED by the sperm whale. This waxy substance is referred to as float, and it’s comprised of squid beaks and other indigestible materials expelled by the sperm whale. This mass hardens in the salt water due to oxidization from heat, sun and salt and washes ashore or floats for periods of time in the ocean. When collected it is evaluated for quality by a set of principle standards; location, age, color and texture. Ambergris is found in a range of colors, such as white, grey, gold, reddish and black; the black variety being the lowest quality due to its softer, more pungent and fecal nature; however produces a fine attar. Some may judge quality by its smell, not the color alone, and the sweeter the better.
WHAT IS ANBAR
The Arabic ANBAR, should not to be mistaken with AMBER; Anbar is the word used to define ambergris in its present form and characteristics by the Arabic speaking population.
WHAT ARE THE HEALTH BENEFITS OF AMBER
Amber’s chief anabolic compound is succinic acid, an extraction when undiluted is most potent. However, there are risk in applications in its undiluted form, therefore it is most recommended to seek advise from health professionals and dietary experts regarding its potential use. It should be noted that amber in its diluted form, appears to carry equal benefits, therefore dilution of the extraction is a common practice.
WHAT I FIND MOST INTERESTING is the health benefits of amber resemble similarly with that of Musk Deer oil, in that both are soothing, reduce rapid heart beat, heart flutter and palpitations, calm the mind and open the heart to higher thought and meditation, spiritual reflection and balance. Curative properties are internal and external - antioxidant and antimicrobial, reduces scarring and aides in tissue regeneration, assists the function of the liver, and its topical use on damaged tissues are known to be that of a pain reliever.
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