Ethiopian Frankincense

Note Profile

Botanical

About

Frankincense from Boswellia papyrifera. Lemon and pear over resin, not the resin-first Omani kind.

Scent Profile

Citrus leads, which is the fact with the most support behind it: Wikipedia calls the incense 'a fresh lemon-pine scent' and traces it to the octyl acetate, and Première Peau describes a 'green-lemon brightness on opening - sharp, crisp, almost terpenic'. Amber_resinous and dry_woody carry the resin body that True Frankincense calls 'robust and full-bodied, with pronounced woody and balsamic elements'. Fruity is the facet that separates this species from the published frankincense note: Première Peau says B. papyrifera 'surprises with pear-like fruitiness' and True Frankincense independently reports 'subtle fruit notes'. Green comes from the same True Frankincense sentence, which names a 'characteristic green quality that distinguishes it from its Arabian and Somali counterparts', and from Première Peau's 'closer to crushed pine needles'. Aromatic_herbal holds that pine-needle terpene edge. Smoky sits, below the parent, because the sources put the smoke in the resinoid rather than in the oil.

ScentWheel

Breadthmedium

EnvelopeBase · ~16h lasting

Family Fresh & Citrus, Amber · Musk · Leather, Fruity

Read off the wheel, not a label applied to the note.

Origin

Resin of Boswellia papyrifera, native to Ethiopia, Eritrea and Sudan, and a different species from the Boswellia sacra and Boswellia carterii that supply Omani and Somali frankincense. The difference is chemical and measured, not just geographic. ScenTree files it as an 'Octyl Acetate Incense' at around 50% octyl acetate, against the 'Incensyl Acetate' group of sacra and Somali beyo material. Wikipedia cites 57.1-65.7% octyl acetate plus 3.4-8.8% N-octanol and attributes the citrus note to the ester. Hydrodistillation gives a colourless to pale yellow oil.

Usage in Perfumery

Base note. Attested on Parfumo in 28 placements across 10 brands, with no Fragrantica page for the term. ScenTree lists olibanum oil in 'coniferous, spicy, woody, amber and floral notes'. Première Peau notes that the resinoid, rather than the essential oil, is used where more depth is wanted, and that it gives 'a heavier, smokier, more balsamic profile without the terpenic top'.