Botanical Name: Cistus ladaniferus
Botanical Family: Cistaceae
Extraction Method: Absolute
Part of Plant Distilled: Oleoresin from the flowers, twigs and leaves
Cultivation Method: Wild-crafted
Composition: 100% Cistus ladaniferus
Country of Origin: Spain
Consistency: Thick viscosity
Scent Description: Intensely tenacious with warm, amber-infused notes of floral, balsam, and spice.
In Living Libations: Moccasin Flower Perfume, Moccasin Flower Shimmer
Blends well with: Jasmine, Rose, Tuberose, Bergamot, Nutmeg, Cedar, Vetiver, Patchouli, Blood Orange, Sandalwood, Ylang, Palo Santo, Spikenard, Clary Sage, Forest Amber, and Vanilla.
Uses: Rare, highly sought after ingredient in perfumery the amber accents it exudes.
Labdanum is the fragrance of perfumed prophecies; this warm, amber elixir is the absolute version of Rock Rose Essential Oil. Distilled from the opulent oleoresin of the flowers, twigs, and leaves of the rockrose plant, Labdanum has been used since biblical times as a general tonic. The ancient Egyptians burned it as fragrant incense.
Labdanum, also known as the Rose of Sharon (Song of Solomon 2:1), has always been regarded as a precious perfume that contains ample aromatic, spiritual, and emotional benefits. It was originally collected by brushing the beards and coats of goats and sheep that had spent the day grazing in the fragrant Cistus ladaniferus shrubs. Today, Labdanum is sought and used in perfumery to emulate the two controversial fragrances obtained from deer (musk) and whales (ambergris).
In addition to its sumptuous balsamic fragrance, Labdanum Absolute offers an array of emotional benefits. Labdanum Absolute is grounding and uplifting and is often used to anoint the chakras during meditation and to inspire a relaxed state of energized calm.
"It was all intense essential oils, layer upon layer of labdanum, patchouli, vanilla, vetiver, ambrette, frankincense, myrrh, amber, Bulgarian rose absolute, Oud wood - the list was endless and beautiful, like a scented prayer. The woman had said some of the ingredients would keep their fragrance for a hundred years, would never die. Like me, he'd said, like us."
~ Joolz Denby, Wild Thing
"Labdanum is used as a fixative in many of the verbena and violet-type perfumes, but it is most generally used in making ambers which are powerful fixing agents."
~ Jill Jesse, Perfume Album
Rockrose aids in meditation and centering as well as visualizing spiritual experiences and bringing them to consciousness."
~ Suzanne Fischer-Rizzi, Complete Aromatherapy Handbook
"Labdanum has a typically balsamic odor, rather flowery, herbaceous, amber-like and very tenacious."
~ H. Panda, The Complete Technology Book on Herbal Perfumes & Cosmetics
