Galbanum is the odd one out among the aromatic resins: not sweet, not warm, not balsamic. It is green, sharp and a little wild, and it gives some of the most famous perfumes of the twentieth century their opening.
Source
Galbanum is a gum oleoresin from Ferula gummosa and related Ferula species, giant fennel-like umbellifers of the mountains of Iran and neighbouring countries. The resin is collected by cutting the root crown or the base of the stem and gathering the milky exudate as it hardens into yellowish or greenish lumps and tears. Persian galbanum has been traded since antiquity; the Levant galbanum of older texts came from the same region by a different route.
Appearance and scent
Soft, sticky, yellow-green to brown lumps, often with fragments of stem. Fresh material is soft and strongly aromatic; older material hardens and darkens. The smell is unmistakable: intensely green, like cut stems and crushed leaves, with green pepper, a resinous body, a faint musky-earthy depth and a slightly bitter, medicinal edge.
The essential oil is dominated by monoterpenes (beta-pinene, delta-3-carene, alpha-pinene) with the green character coming from trace pyrazines and from undecatriene and related molecules that are among the most powerful odorants known.
In perfumery
Galbanum essential oil, resinoid and absolute are the reference green notes. Chanel No. 19, Guerlain Vol de Nuit and Balmain Vent Vert built their identities on it, and green chypres and “leafy” florals still rely on it. It is a top-to-heart note despite being a resin: the green oil evaporates quickly, and the resinoid leaves a soft, earthy-balsamic base. It pairs with iris, hyacinth, violet leaf, oakmoss and, surprisingly well, with labdanum and benzoin in small amounts.
In incense and religion
Exodus 30:34 lists galbanum with stacte, onycha and pure frankincense as the four ingredients of the Temple incense, which has made it a subject of centuries of rabbinic and scholarly comment, not least because on its own it smells unpleasant when burned. Its role in the blend was presumably to add sharpness and body to the frankincense. Kyphi reconstructions sometimes include it. Modern incense use is small; burned alone it is harsh.
In medicine
Classical and Persian medicine used galbanum for coughs, wounds and digestive complaints, and it was in European pharmacopoeias into the twentieth century as an antispasmodic and expectorant. These uses are historical.
Buying and using
Sold as lumps, resinoid or essential oil. For perfumery, the oil is easiest and the resinoid gives the fuller profile. It is very powerful: dilute to 1 % or less before evaluating. Keep it sealed; it hardens and loses its green top within a year or two. See How to store resins.
Frequently asked questions
What does galbanum smell like?
Intensely green: cut stems, crushed leaves, green pepper, with a sharp, resinous, slightly musky and earthy base. It is one of the most powerful green notes in perfumery.
Where does galbanum come from?
Mainly Iran, from Ferula gummosa and related species, large umbellifers of the mountains. Turkey and Afghanistan contribute smaller amounts.
Is galbanum used in incense?
Historically yes: it is named in the Book of Exodus as an ingredient of the Temple incense with stacte, onycha and frankincense. Today it is used mostly in perfumery; burned alone its smoke is harsh.
Sources & further reading
- galbanum
- ferula
- green notes
- perfumery
