For Good Resin

In Muscat, Frankincense Permeates Into Everything From the Commonplace to the Unlikely

- Sonal Shah

Oman smells like Christmas all year round. Walking in out of the hot sun—whether it’s into a mosque, a hotel, or someone’s home—means being engulfed by the pervasive plumes of frankincense smoke. It fills every interior space with a rich, piney fragrance, nuanced with hints of citrus peel; a cleansing perfume that is mellower and less medicinal than the camphor Indians are familiar with.

Frankincense recalls the Christian holiday season because it is the Roman Catholic Church’s signature scent, burnt in the censors of this and various Orthodox faiths. Frankincense was also one of the three gifts brought to Jesus’s cradle by the biblical Magi. At various points in history, this gummy, resinous extract from different Boswellia tree species has been more valuable than gold, one of the Wise Men’s other gifts. Traditionally used as an aromatic, frankincense— luban in Arabic—can now be found in many places besides the incense burner.