The botanical origin of Scented Myrrh (Blssabol or Habak Hadi)

THE BOTANICAL ORIGIN OF SCENTED MYRRH (BISSABOL OR HABAK HADI) 1

M A T S T H U L I N A N D P E R C L A E S O N

Thulin, Mats (Department of Systematic Botany, Uppsala University, Box 541, S-751 21 Upp- sala, Sweden) and Per Claeson (Department of Pharmacognosy, Biomedical Center, Uppsala University, Box 579, S-751 23 Uppsala, Sweden). THE BOTANICAL OglGrN OF SCENTED MYRR~ (BtssABOL OR HAaAK HAD0. Economic Botany 45(4):487-494. 1991. It is concluded that the botanical origin of scented myrrh (bissabol or habak hadi), a major article for export from Somalia since ancient times, is Commiphora guidottii (Burseraceae) and not C. erythraea as generally has been presumed. The reasons forthe previous confusion are discussed, and an updated synonymy and distribution map for C. guidottii are given.

Der botanischer Ursprung der siJsse Myrrhe (scented myrrh, bissabol oder habak hadi). Die Stammpflanze der siisse Myrrhe (scented myrrh, bissabol oder habak hadi), ein wichtiger Aus- fuhrartikel aus Somalia seit alters her, ist Commiphora guidottii (Burseraceae) und nicht C. erythraea als allgemein vermutet ist. Die Griinde der eher Verwirrung sind diskutiert, und eine erneuerte Synonymik und Verbreitungskarte fiir C. guidottii sind vorgelegt.

Key words: bissabol, Commiphora guidottii, habak hadi, myrrh, scented myrrh.

Two of the major exports of Somalia, since ancient times and up to the present day, are frankincense and myrrh. The botanical origin of the two major kinds of frankincense produced in Somalia and southern Arabia was clarified by Thulin and Warfa (1987), and as regards myrrh it is fairly uncontroversial that the origin of the major Somali product, "molmol ," is Commiph- ora myrrha (Nees) Engl., although still C. play- fairii (Hook. f.) Engl. is sometimes erroneously mentioned as an alternative. Unnecessary confusion was also introduced by Martinetz et al. (1989), who, in their major treatment of the cul- tural and natural history of frankincense and myrrh, published color photographs of "flow- ering" myrrh trees, in which the flowers actually belong to a parasitic species of Loranthaceae.

However, the botanical origin o f the second major type of myrrh in Somalia, traditionally called "habak hadi" (Somali) or "bissabol" (Hin- di), is still highly controversial, and is the subject of the present paper.

' Received 6 August 1990; accepted 21 June 1991.

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

Vaughan (1852), Civil and Port Surgeon at Aden, in his article "Notes upon the drugs observed at Aden, Arabia" described a gum-resin resembling myrrh and called by the Indian name "Bissa Bol" by the Arabs and "Hebbakhade" by the Somalis. It was brought to Aden with myrrh and other gums by Somalis and then reexported to India and China, "'where it is mixed with food given to milch cows and buffaloes, for the pur- pose o f increasing the quantity and improving the quality of milk." It was also said to be used as a size to impart a bright floss to whitewashed walls. The gum-resin was "collected by the So- malis on the opposite coast." The tree from which it was obtained was said to resemble the "Heera Bol tree," i.e., Commiphora myrrha.

A specimen ofbissa bol resin was sent to Eng- land by Vaughan and was there examined by D. Hanbury (Vaughan 1852:227), who recog- nized it as a substance usually regarded in Eng- land as a species o f myrrh o f inferior quality. It was said to be formerly known as "East Indian Myrrh" and to be identical with the "Myrrha Indica" o f Martiny and Martiny (subsequently published in 1854). A package from Bombay was

Economic Botany 45(4) pp. 487-494. 1991 �9 1991, by The New York Botanical Garden, Bronx, NY 10458 U.S.A.

488 ECONOMIC BOTANY [VOL. 45

said to have been offered in the London market in 1852 as " G u m BhesaboU."

Bissa bol was subsequently ment ioned in var- ious pharmaceutical handbooks, such as Flfick- iger and Hanbury (1874). Fliickiger and Hanbury (1879) also report on a letter in 1877 to Fliickiger from Captain F. M. Hunter, Assistant Political Resident of Aden, saying that the "Habaghadi" of the Somalis grows in "Ogadain and the districts around Harrar ," only at a considerable dis- tance from the sea-shore. The gum was said to be exported from "the whole Somali coast to Mokha, Jidda, Aden, the Persian Gulf, India and even China" (Fliickiger and Hanbury 1879:146). Fliickiger and Hanbury (1879) also report that a solution o f bissa bol in "bisulphide o f carbon" does not change its color i f bromine is added, as opposed to that of true myrrh that assumes an intense violet color. The same authors erroneously assumed that habaghadi was the same as hodtai. G u m hodtai (hotai) was, however, later shown to be the product of Cornmiphora play- fairii (Anonymous 1878; Drake-Brockman 1912; Holmes 1906).

At about the same time, in the R e p o r t . . . o f the Royal Gardens at Kew (Anonymous 1878: 41), it was ment ioned that Mr. W. Perry, Fleet Paymaster in the Royal Navy and amateur bot- anist (Wickens 1982), had sent two specimens of the "B6sabol" tree to Kew that had produced an abundance o f foliage. The plant could not be identified with any certainty, but was thought to be allied to Balsamodendron kataf (Forssk.) Kunth. According to Perry the plant was called "Had i " and its gum "Habaz Hadi" by the So- malis. It was said to be found only in the center of the Somali promontory and not at all in Ara- bia. The gum was purchased almost entirely by Indian merchants for export to Bombay. The exact origin of the living material is not known. According to the Kew Report (Anonymous 1878) Perry had not collected it himself, but obtained it from Hunter, who in turn probably obtained it from Somali merchants.

In the Kew Report of 1880 (Anonymous 1880) the "B6sabol" plants were identified as Balsamea erythraea [= Hemprichia erythraea Ehrenb. and Commiphora erythraea (Ehrenb.) Engl.], and said to agree with a plant collected in Somali land by Dr. J. Kirk, Her Majesty 's Consul-General at Zanzibar, and identified by A. Engler as Balsa- mea erythraea var. glabrescens [published by Engler (1883:21) as Commiphora erythraea var.

glabrescens Engl.]. Following this Kew Report , Fliickiger (1891) also recorded the " 'Baisabol" or "Bisabol" tree as Balsamea erythraea.

E. M. Holmes, Curator o f the Museums o f the Pharmaceutical Society in London, reported (Holmes 1896) that he had tasted a drop of resin exuded on the branch o f one of the living plants sent by Perry and cult ivated at Kew. He confirmed "that it had exactly the peculiar flavour o f the drug called bissa-bol." However, Holmes was not convinced that the plant was identical with Commiphora erythraea or C. erythraea var. glabrescens and pointed out the difference in the color of the wood between Perry 's plant (white wood) and that of C. erythraea (red wood). In- stead he suggested the plant yielding bissa-bol to be Balsamodendron kataf [= Commiphora kataf (Forssk.) Engl.].

Holmes (1898-1899) summed up the then ex- isting knowledge of the different sorts o f myrrh and bdell ium (i.e., a myrrh-l ike resin) as well as of the trees believed to produce them. As regards "habaghadi" or "perfumed bdel l ium," as he now called it, he gave an illustration of a leaf of one of Perry's plants cult ivated at Kew and stated it to be a leaf of the plant "which certainly yields the perfumed bdell ium or Habaghadi of the So- malis ." He was uncertain, as to the identi ty of the plant, but stated that it was named C. erythraea var. glabrescens at Kew. Holmes (1906: 257) added that "Habaghadee" means female myrrh, and that it reaches China under the name of myrrh, and that it "is the only myrrh to be found in Chinese collections of mater ia medica ." "Bissabol," according to information given to Holmes, meant buffalo myrrh, "as it is mixed with the food given to milch cows and buffaloes to increase the milk."

Tucholka (1897), in a thesis on the chemical composition ofbissabol, reported that habak hadi was used at the female circumcision. According to information he had obtained from Dr. C. Kel- ler, a Swiss who visited northeast Africa in 1891, the Somali girls after the operat ion were bathed in water in which the resin was emulsified. A similar bath was also said to be taken by Somali women after giving bir th to a child. Keller apparently never saw the living tree h imself but informed Tucholka that the tree yielding "habaghadi" was a meter-high shrub growing in Ogaden and in the area between the rivers Webi- Ganane and Webi-Juba. The resin investigated by Tucholka was brought by Keller, who had

199 l] THULIN & CLAESON: SCENTED MYRRH 489

bought it in the region of Haber Junis (in the Harerghe Region of today's Ethiopia) from a car- avan passing from Ogaden to Berbera. The plant remains contaminating the resin were also examined microscopically by Tucholka, who concluded that the resin doubtlessly was derived from a species of Commiphora, but whether it was C. erythraea could not be established.

Tschirch (1906:406; 1925) stated that "Bisa- bol-Myrrha" originates from a Commiphora, perhaps C. erythraea, and repeated the information obtained by Tucholka from Keller.

Drake-Brockman (1912) reported a number of gums and resins produced in Somalia and, as regards the "Habbak Haddi," he stated that the Haddi tree producing it "is only found in the western districts of Somaliland, especially in the Ogaden, Rer Amaden, and Aulihan countries." He had never seen it growing, but reported that the "bark is collected by Somali women and used for burning inside the huts, owing to its pleasant smell and supposed medicinal virtues." Fur- thermore, an emulsion of the gum was frequently given as a remedy for venereal complaints, as well as administered to milch camels to improve their condition. Also, the "fruit is sometimes collected and given to camels, as they are said to be very fond of it." Drake-Brockman gave a very illustrative description of habak hadi: "it is in- variably seen in large irregular lumps of much the same colour as true myrrh, except that there are always small whitish areas, which give the pieces the appearance of toffee with small bits of cocoanut or almonds in it; it also has a very powerful and distinctive smell quite unlike myrrh." Following Holmes, Drake-Brockman identified the tree as C. erythraea var. glabrescens.

Holmes (1910, 1913) used "perfumed myrrh" as an English equivalent to bissabol and pointed out that in England and Germany it was erroneously sold as "opopanax" and used as an in- gredient in perfumes. The perfumed myrrh was said to be collected in "the Ugaden" and exported via Bombay to China, where it was used in "joss sticks," which were burnt as incense. The confusion in Europe between the medicinal opopanax and the opopanax of perfumery (= bissabol, or perfumed, sweet or scented myrrh) was further discussed by Holmes (1924). The true (medicinal) opopanax is claimed to be derived from Opopanax chironium (L.) Koch and O. per- sicus Boiss. (Umbelliferae) (Hoppe 1975).

Chiovenda (1932) described the new species Commiphora guidottii Chiov. from southwest- ern Somalia stating that its indigenous name was "Addi" and that it was the source of the gum "Habhc addi." However, Chiovenda was apparently unaware of the old confusion surrounding the origin of this product.

In the literature since 1932, the plant producing bissabol (or habak hadi, coarse myrrh, East Indian myrrh, false myrrh, perfumed myrrh, scented myrrh, sweet myrrh, perfumed bdellium, scented bdellium, opopanax, etc.) has been given as C. erythraea var. glabrescens (e.g., Arctander 1960; Evans 1989; Groom 1981; Giinther 1950; Hoppe 1975; Jaretzky 1949; Wenninger and Yates 1969; Youngken 1950), C. erythraea (Per- net 1972; Tucker 1986), or C. guidottii (Claeson and Samuelsson 1989; Craveiro et al. 1983). Some authors, e.g., Cufodontis (1956) and Martinetz et al. (1989), give both C. erythraea var. glabrescens and C. guidottii as sources of this product.

In the above review, the uses of bissabol reported between about 1850 and 1930 are briefly indicated. However, its history certainly goes back much further, and some possible ancient uses of this gum are described below, followed by a brief chapter containing information from more recent years.

POSSIBLE ANCIENT USES OF BISSABOL

Holmes (1913, 1924) apparently was the first to propose that the myrrh of the Bible was the perfumed myrrh or bissabol and not the medicinal myrrh or "heerabor' from Commiphora myrrha. As evidence he gave the frequent men- tion of myrrh in the Bible as a perfume. Also, the kind of myrrh called "Odoraria" by Pliny and used by the Romans in temples as incense was believed by Holmes to be the perfumed myrrh. However, Tschirch (1925) refuted Holmes opinion on the biblical myrrh, and pointed out that the medicinal myrrh also contains large quantities of essential oils.

Groom (1981) again suggested that the"scented myrrh" of Pliny (see Rackham 1945) could be bissabol. He furthermore identified the myrrh ("ntyw") used by the Egyptians for embalming as bissabol (Groom 1981:27, 123), stating that the plant Commiphora erythraea was easier for the Egyptians to obtain than C. myrrha, the source of the medicinal myrrh.


Tucker (1986), repeating the opinion of Groom, claimed that opopanax or bissabol from C. erythraea, was probably the "ntyw" of the ancient Egyptians, as well as the "scented myrrh" of Pliny and other classical authors.

It is, of course, very difficult to evaluate these proposals and statements on ancient uses of bissabol. However, as is clear from the writings of Pliny and from the "Periplus" (see Schoff 1912), the trade between the Horn of Africa and Europe was already quite well developed during classical times. It is therefore reasonable to believe that both medicinal myrrh and perfumed myrrh were commodities brought to Europe very early, and it is quite likely that the scented myrrh of Pliny really refers to bissabol.

The assumption, however, that bissabol was easier for the Egyptians to obtain than the medicinal myrrh is without justification, as it rests on the erroneous belief that the the origin of this product is C. erythraea (see below).

In addition, it is clear from archaeological find- ings that the contacts between Somalia and Chi- na have been well developed since at least the 14th century (Chittick 1982). Therefore, the use of bissabol in the Far East may well date back to the Middle Ages, if not earlier.

MODERN USES FOR AND PRODUCTION OF BISSABOL

Without a doubt, many of the uses of bissabol recorded under Historical Background are also true today, but its use by Somali women in connection with female circumcision and child birth (see above) has not been confirmed (A. Talle, pers. comm.). However, according to label information from the collection Wieland 1755 (EA), women in the Luuq District in Somalia, after having given birth to a baby, burn wood of the Hadi tree to fill the house with smoke. From more recent sources it can be added that habak hadi is used in Somalia for the treatment of stom- ach complaints and diarrhoea (Claeson and Sam- uelsson 1989; Martinetz et al. 1989). This information was confirmed by M. Thulin in Garbaharrey and Luuq in 1989, and in Ceel Bur in 1990. Also, according to information obtained in Luuq, habak hadi is used topically for the treatment of wounds. It is also still largely exported to China, as well as to the European perfume industry (as "opopanax"). Apart from the use of the essential oil, "opopanax oil," the res-

inoid is regarded as a popular and useful fixative in perfumery (Arctander 1960; Giinther 1950).

The Hadi trees are tapped during the dry sea- son, through incisions made in the bark (information obtained by M. Thulin in Ceel Bur). Coulter (1987) reported the Somali production of"opopanax" to be 300 tonnes per annum, with a value of USD 3.000 FOB per tonne. Small quantities were also said to be exported from Ethiopia and Kenya. International prices FOB for the first-grade cleaned product were said to be roughly USD 3.5-4 per kg as compared to USD 6-7 per kg for myrrh in November 1986 (Coulter 1987). Martinetz et al. (1989) reported a considerably higher price, DM 19.00 per kg, in Hamburg in March 1985.

THE IDENTITY OF C. ERYTHRAEA AND

C. ERYTHRAEA VAR. GL,4BRESCENS

C erythraea (in C sect. Hemprichia) was orig- inally described in 1829 by Ehrenberg as Hem- prichia erythraea from the Ketumbal Island in the Red Sea. Currently it is regarded as a taxo- nomically complex species (including, e.g., C. holtziana END.) widespread in northeast tropical Africa and southern Arabia, by Vollesen (1990). However, Gillett (1991) treats C. erythraea as a subspecies of C. kataf (Forssk.) Engl., with a restricted area of distribution in the coastal area of the Red Sea. Most of what was previously treated as C. erythraea in Somalia, Ethiopia and Kenya is, by Gillett, included in the resurrected C. holtziana. C. holtziana (or C. erythraea sensu VoUesen) is in Somalia one of the sources of so called low grade myrrh or habak hagar, but not of bissabol.

Still, a complicating factor is that the resin obtained from C. holtziana in Kenya, according to Provan et al. (1987), is said to be sold as "opopanax," just like bissabol from Somalia. Nevertheless, the Somali vernacular name for the product in Kenya is "habaq-hagar-ad" (Ma- radufu 1982). The small quantities of "opopanax" said to be exported from Kenya (Coulter 1987, see above) are therefore almost certainly resin from C. holtziana and not the true bissabol.

C. erythraea var. glabrescens was based on a collection made by Kirk in Kisimayo on the coast of southern Somalia. The type material consists of a few branches with leaves and flowers, but its identity is still uncertain (J. B. Gillett, pers. comm.). It has not been possible to identify any

1991 ] THULIN & CLAESON: SCENTED MYRRH 491

recent collections from the coast o f Somalia or Kenya with Kirk's material, and probably the taxon is a distinct species with a narrow distr ibution in southern Somalia. The taxon is not closely related to C. erythraea and certainly has nothing to do with bissabol either.

How, then, has the widespread association of bissabol with the names C. erythraea and C. erythraea var. glabrescens come about? The answer is simply that the association is based on an un- fortunate misidentification at Kew around 1880, when the bissabol plant cult ivated there (see above) was believed to belong to the latter taxon. This mistake is easy to understand since the bissabol plant was known in leaf only, and very few collections of Commiphora from Somalia were available for comparison at that time; the single specimen of var. glabrescens was obviously thought to be the best match. Actually, no material of the true bissabol plant became available at Kew until well after World War II. Still, this early misdeterminat ion has been perpetuated in the literature up to the present day.

T H E IDENTITY OF THE BISSABOL TREE

The herbarium specimen with the preserved leaf of Perry's original bissabol plant (see above) was annotated C. sessiliflora by Vollesen in 1983, although the specimen was not specifically men- t ioned in the subsequent publication. C. sessiliflora was described from gypsum areas in western Somalia and eastern Ethiopia (Vollesen 1985: Map 1), but no ment ion was made of the use of the plant or its connection with bissabol.

Shortly after the publicat ion of C. sessiliflora, type material of C. guidottii Chiov. (see above), which long had been though to be lost, was re- discovered in the herbar ium in Bologna. It then became apparent that C. guidottii was conspecific with C. sessiliflora, for which it is an earlier name (Friis et al. 1987; Vollesen 1987). The identity of C. guidottii had previously been uncertain, partly because no type material had been available, partly because the description and illustration in the protologue, particularly of the pseudo- aril, are misleading (Vollesen 1987).

During recent field work within the project "Plants used in tradit ional medicine in Somalia" it has been repeatedly confirmed that the tree called hadi in Somali is Commiphora guidottii and that this tree really is the source of the gum- resin called habak hadi. F rom Luuq in the Gedo

Region in Somalia a locally produced sample of habak hadi was also obtained, completely agree- ing with the commercial product exported from Mogadishu. The nomenclature of the plant can now be summarized as follows:

Commiphora guidottli Chiov., FI. Somala 2:91, Fig. 54 (1932). Type: Somalia, Bakol Region, Hoddur, between Ted and El Gorum, 19 June 1930, Guidotti 2 (BOLO isotype, K photo.).

C. sessiliflora Vollesen in Kew Bull. 40:71, Fig. 14 (1985). Type: Somalia, 2-3 km SW of Galkayo, 6~ 47~ May 1979, Gillett, Hemming & Watson 21938 (K holotype, EA, K isotypes).

C. erythraea sensu auctt., non (Ehrenb.) Engl. C. erythraea var. glabrescens sensu auctt., non Engl.

According to Vollesen (1985), C. guidottii (as C. sessiliflora) is closely related to C. ornifofia (Balf. f.) Gillett from Socotra, and Vollesen (1990) even suggested that C. guidottii may prove to be best treated as a subspecies of the latter. However, particularly the shorter inflorescences with ses- sile flowers in C. guidottii support its t reatment as a distinct species. Also, there are no reports of production of gum from C. ornifolia. C. guidottii belongs to C. sect. Arillopsidium along with some seven other species in Somalia.

T H E DISTRIBUTION~ HABITAT AND VERNACULAR N A M E S OF Co GUIDOTTII AND ITS RESIN

The distr ibution o f C. guidottii was mapped by Vollesen (1985:Map 1), but, as a number o f additional collections have been made since then, an updated map is given in Fig. 1. The species is now known from the Bail, Nugaal, Mudug, Galguduud, Bakool and Gedo Regions in So- malia, and from the Bale and Sidamo Regions in the southeasternmost corner of Ethiopia.

The species grows in open Acacia-Commiph- ora bushland, on stony slopes or ridges or on level ground at alti tudes between about 70 and 800 m. It is always associated with gypsum out- crops or gypsaceous soils (Fig. 2, 3).

The vernacular name for the plant in Somali is "hadi" (sometimes spelled "hedi" or "hethi" by collectors) in all parts of its area of distribution, but also "dunkaa l" has been recorded in central Somalia.

The resin is in Somali called "habak hadi" o r - - i n s tandard o r thography- -"xabak hadi ," "xabak" being a general term for gum or resin. From the numerous alternatives available in Eng- lish (see above), we propose the tradit ion-laden


Fig. 1. Distribution of Commiphora guidottii.

"scented myrrh" to be used as the general des- ignation for this resin.

COLLECTIONS OF C. ~ V l D O r r i l OTHER THAN TYPES

Somalia. Bari Region: 10~ 49~ Beck- ett 650 (EA, K). Nugaal Region: between Halin and Hedidera tug, 9~ 48~ 29 Sept 1956, Bally 10877 (EA, K); around Halin, 27 Oct 1980, Beckett 480 (EA, K); Las Anod, Oct 1968, Rich- ards 9 (K); 6.5 km S of Garoe, 14 June 1958, Hemming 1371 (EA, K). Mudug Region: 2 km E of Burdale on road to Jariiban, 7~ 47~ 26 May 1979, Gillett, Hemming & Watson 22033 (EA, K); Jariiban Distr., 18 km from Gac- mafale, 30 Oct 1983, Kazmi, Mohamed & Hus- sein 5607 (K, MOG); Galkayo, 14 Oct 1959, Hemming 1693 (EA, K); 5 km W of Galkayo, 18 Oct 1951, Bond & Pechanec 74 (EA); 9 km S of Galkayo, 6~ 47022'E, 7 June 1981, Gil- lett & Beckett 23333 (EA, K); 12 km SE of Gal- kayo, 6"40'N, 47~ 3 Oct 1980, Beckett 425 (EA, K); 13 km S of Galkayo, 6"39'N, 47"25'E, 29 Nov 1986, Lavranos & Carter 25031 (K, MOG); 5 km SE of Hiudughen, 6"30'N, 47"45'E,

Fig. 2, 3. Fig. 2 (left). Commiphora guidottii growing on gypsum plain just outside Ceel Bur, Somalia. Fig. 3 (right). Foliage of Commiphora guidottii.

1991 ] THULIN & CLAESON: SCENTED MYRRH 493

Nov 1961, Paskin H.100 (EA); Hobyo Distr., just W of Labawarood, Afbarwaaqo, 6~ 48~ 20 June 1987, Wieland 4569 (K); 30 km WSW of Atbarwaaqo, 6~ 48"32'E, 5 Mar 1979, Beckett 27 (EA). Galguduud Region: Go- dinlave, 5"54'N, 46"38'E, 18 Oct 1954, Popov 1011 (EA, K); 7 krn E of Ceel Bur, Jan 1988, Herlocker S-469 (K); Ceel Bur, 8 May 1990, Thulin, Hedr6n & Abdi Dahir 7308 (K, MOG, UPS). Gedo Region: 7 km on the road from Luuq to Waajid, then 9 km on road towards Yeed, 8 June 1989, Thulin & Bashir Mohamed 7005 (K, MOG, UPS); 14 km NNE of Luuq, 3~ 42~ 10 Nov 1983, Hemming 83/148 (EA); 5 km from Luuq, Cadhacay village, 3~ 42~ 22 May 1988, SMP 188 (K, MOG, UPS); 3 km E of Luuq to Waajid, 3~ 42~ 21 May 1983, Gillett & Hemming 24297 (K, MOG); 17 km SW of Luuq on road to Garbaharrey, 30 Nov 1983, Wieland 1755 (EA, K). Without pre- cise locality, plant grown at Kew obtained by Perry ca. 1878 (K).

E th iop ia . Bale Region , We ld iya , 4~ 42004'E, 12 June 1986, Gilbert, Sebsebe & Vol- lesen 8175 (ETH, K, UPS). Sidamo Region, 24 km SW of Dolo on track to Suftu, 4"04'N, 41 ~ 19 May 1983, Gilbert, Enserrnu & Vollesen 7579 (C, ETH, K, UPS).

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

This work has been performed within the Somali-Swedish research project on medicinal plants sponsored by SOMAC (Somali Academy of Sciences and Arts) and SAREC (Swedish Agency for Research Cooper- ation with Developing Countries). Grants for field work in Somalia have also been obtained through the Flora of Somalia project from SAREC and the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (M. Thulm), and from the 1F Foundation for Pharmaceutical Research (P. Claeson).

We are also indebted to the Directors and Curators of the Herbaria in Kew and Nairobi for giving us access to their collections, and to Mr. J. B. Gillett, Kew, for valuable discussions.

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A N N O U N C E M E N T

The Award Commit tee of the Lawrence Memorial Fund invites nominat ions for the 1992 Law- rence Memorial Award. Honoring the memory of Dr. George H. M. Lawrence, founding Director o f the Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentat ion, the Award ($1000) is given biennially to support travel for doctoral dissertation research in systematic botany or horticulture, or the history of the plant sciences, including literature and exploration.

Major professors are urged to nominate outstanding doctoral students who have achieved official candidacy for their degrees and will be conducting pert inent dissertation research that would benefit significantly from travel enabled by the Award. The Commit tee will not entertain direct applications. A student who wishes to be considered should arrange for nominat ion by his/her major professor; this may take the form of a letter which covers supporting materials prepared by the nominee.

Supporting materials should describe briefly but clearly the candidate 's program of research and how it would be significantly enhanced by travel that the Award would support. Letters of nominat ion and supporting materials, including seconding letters, should be received by the Commit tee no later than l May 1992 and should be directed to" Dr. R. W. Kiger, Hunt Institute, Carnegie Mellon Universi ty, Pittsburgh, PA 15213-3890 USA, phone (412) 268-2434.

Documents

The botanical origin of Scented Myrrh (Blssabol or Habak Hadi)