Introduction:
Frankincense has been a valued commodity for millennia, prized for its pleasant scent and burnt as an offering to the gods of many different religions. From Ancient Egypt to Judaism, from the Roman Empire to the modern Catholic Church, but also in China, Japan, and India, frankincense was and is a traditional incense material and is also used as a natural remedy for various ailments [1 – 4]. The material is a gum resin sourced from the genus Boswellia and traded as such in various quality grades as well as in form of the distilled essential oil.
In part I of this study, the volatile and semivolatile composition of the gum resins originating from the four commercially most important Boswellia species, namely B. sacra, B. serrata, B. papyri/era, and B. frereana, were analyzed and discussed. Part II continues this investigation with a focus on less common Boswellia species and two samples from hybridization experiments.