Sandalwood
Encyclopedia
Sandalwood is the name of a class of fragrant wood
s from trees in the genus
Santalum
. The woods are heavy, yellow, and fine-grained, and unlike many other aromatic woods they retain their fragrance for decades. As well as using the harvested and cut wood in-situ, essential oil
s are also extracted from the woods for use. Both the wood and the oil produce a distinctive fragrance that has been highly valued for centuries. Consequently, the slow-growing trees have been overharvested in many areas.
Sandalwoods are medium-sized hemiparasitic
trees. Notable members of this group are Indian sandalwood (Santalum album
) and Australian sandalwood (Santalum spicatum
). Others in the genus species have fragrant wood. These are found in India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Australia, Indonesia, and the Pacific Islands
. In India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka it is called Chandan.
Producing commercially valuable sandalwood with high levels of fragrance oils, requires Santalum trees to be a minimum of eight years old, but at least fourteen years is preferred. Australia is the largest producer of Santalum album, the majority grown around Kununurra, Western Australia.
Unlike most trees, sandalwood is harvested by toppling the entire tree instead of sawing them down at the trunk close to ground level. This way, wood from the stump and root can also be used.
. Sandalwood smells somewhat like other wood scents, except it has a bright and fresh edge with few natural analogues. When used in smaller proportions in a perfume
, it is an excellent fixative
to enhance the head space of other fragrances.
Sandalwood oil is widely used in the cosmetic industry. The main source of true sandalwood, S. album, is a protected species, and demand for it cannot be met. Many species of plants are traded as "sandalwood". Within the genus Santalum alone, there are more than nineteen species. Traders will often accept oil from closely related species, such as various species in the genus Santalum, as well as from unrelated plants such as West Indian Sandalwood (Amyris
balsamifera) in the family Rutaceae
or bastard sandalwood (Myoporum sandwicense
, Myoporaceae
). However, most woods from these alternative sources will lose their aroma within a few months or years.
Isobornyl cyclohexanol
is a synthetic fragrance chemical produced as an alternative to the natural product.
.
The paste is prepared by grinding wood by hand upon granite slabs shaped for the purpose. With slow addition of water a thick paste results, which is mixed with saffron
or other such pigments to make Chandana.
Sandalwood is considered in alternative medicine
to bring one closer to the divine. It gives a cool soothing effect to the body thus reducing the body heat. In Thirupathi after religious tonsure, Sandal paste is applied to protect the skin. Sandalwood essential oil is used for Ayurvedic purposes and treating anxiety
.
) group and attributed to Amitabha Buddha. Sandalwood scent is believed to transform one's desires and maintain a person's alertness while in meditation
. Sandalwood is also one of the more popular scents used for incense
used when offering incense to the Buddha
.
, is the most commonly used incense material by the Chinese
and Japanese
in worship and various ceremonies. It is used in Indian incense
, religiously or otherwise.
offer sandalwood twigs to the firekeeping priests
who offer the sandalwood to the fire
which keep the fire burning. Sandalwood is offered to all of the three grades of fire in the Fire temple
, including the Atash Dadgahs. Sandalwood is not offered to the divo, a homemade lamp. Often, money is offered to the mobad
along with the sandalwood. Sandalwood is called sukhar in the Zoroastrian community.
The sandalwood in the fire temple is often more expensive to buy than at a Zoroastrian store. It is often a source of income
for the fire temple.
properties.
It is used in aromatherapy
and to prepare soap
s.
Due to this antimicrobial activity, it can be used to clear skin from blackheads and spots, but it must always be properly diluted with a carrier oil. Because of its strength, sandalwood oil
should never be applied to the skin without being diluted in a carrier oil.
and optimal refractive index
, sandalwood oil is often employed as an immersion oil within ultraviolet and fluorescence microscopy.
).
Wood
Wood is a hard, fibrous tissue found in many trees. It has been used for hundreds of thousands of years for both fuel and as a construction material. It is an organic material, a natural composite of cellulose fibers embedded in a matrix of lignin which resists compression...
s from trees in the genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
Santalum
Santalum
Santalum is a genus of woody flowering plants, the best known and commercially valuable of which is the Indian Sandalwood tree, S. album. Members of the genus are trees or shrubs. Most are root parasites which photosynthesize their own food but tap the roots of other species for water and...
. The woods are heavy, yellow, and fine-grained, and unlike many other aromatic woods they retain their fragrance for decades. As well as using the harvested and cut wood in-situ, essential oil
Essential oil
An essential oil is a concentrated hydrophobic liquid containing volatile aroma compounds from plants. Essential oils are also known as volatile oils, ethereal oils or aetherolea, or simply as the "oil of" the plant from which they were extracted, such as oil of clove...
s are also extracted from the woods for use. Both the wood and the oil produce a distinctive fragrance that has been highly valued for centuries. Consequently, the slow-growing trees have been overharvested in many areas.
True sandalwoods
Parasitic plant
A parasitic plant is one that derives some or all of its sustenance from another plant. About 4,100 species in approximately 19 families of flowering plants are known. Parasitic plants have a modified root, the haustorium, that penetrates the host plant and connects to the xylem, phloem, or...
trees. Notable members of this group are Indian sandalwood (Santalum album
Santalum album
Santalum album or Indian sandalwood is a small tropical tree, the most commonly known source of sandalwood. This species has been utilised, cultivated and traded for many years, some cultures placing great significance on its fragrant and medicinal qualities. For these reasons it has been...
) and Australian sandalwood (Santalum spicatum
Santalum spicatum
Santalum spicatum, a species known as Australian sandalwood, is a tree native to semi-arid areas at the edge of Southwest Australia. It is traded as sandalwood and its valuable oil has been used as an aromatic, a medicine and a food source. S...
). Others in the genus species have fragrant wood. These are found in India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Australia, Indonesia, and the Pacific Islands
Oceania
Oceania is a region centered on the islands of the tropical Pacific Ocean. Conceptions of what constitutes Oceania range from the coral atolls and volcanic islands of the South Pacific to the entire insular region between Asia and the Americas, including Australasia and the Malay Archipelago...
. In India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka it is called Chandan.
- Santalum album
, or Indian sandalwood, is a threatened species. It is indigenous to South India, and grows in the Western GhatsWestern GhatsThe Western Ghats, Western Ghauts or the Sahyādri is a mountain range along the western side of India. It runs north to south along the western edge of the Deccan Plateau, and separates the plateau from a narrow coastal plain along the Arabian Sea. The Western Ghats block rainfall to the Deccan...
and a few other mountain ranges like the Kalrayan and Shevaroy HillsShevaroy HillsShevaroys is the anglicised name for the Servarayan which lie near the town of Salem in Tamil Nadu, India. It is a detached hill range, covering an area of 50 sq. m., with plateaus from 4000 to 5000 ft. above sea-level. They include the sanatorium and several old coffee plantations...
. Although sandalwood trees in India and Nepal are government-owned and their harvest is controlled, many trees are illegally cut down. Sandalwood oil prices have risen to $1,000–1,500 per kg recently. Some countries regard the sandal oil trade as ecologically harmful as it encourages overharvesting sandalwood trees. Sandalwood from the Mysore region of KarnatakaKarnatakaKarnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...
(formerly Carnatic), Southern India is high quality. New plantationPlantationA plantation is a long artificially established forest, farm or estate, where crops are grown for sale, often in distant markets rather than for local on-site consumption...
s were created with international aid in Tamilnadu for economic exploitation. In Kununurra in Western Australia, Indian sandalwood (Santalum album) is grown on a large scale.
- Santalum ellipticumSantalum ellipticumSantalum ellipticum, commonly known as Iliahialoe or Coast Sandalwood, is a species of flowering plant in the European mistletoe family, Santalaceae, that is endemic to the Hawaiian Islands. It is a sprawling shrub to small tree, typically reaching a height of and a canopy spread of , but is...
, S. freycinetianumSantalum freycinetianumSantalum freycinetianum, Iliahi or Freycinet sandalwood, is a species of flowering tree in the European mistletoe family, Santalaceae, that is endemic to the Hawaiian Islands. Its binomial name commemorates Henri Louis Claude de Saulces de Freycinet, a 19th-century French explorer...
, and S. paniculatum, the HawaiiHawaiiHawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
an sandalwood (iliahi), were also used and considered high quality. These three species were exploited between 1790 and 1825 before the supply of trees ran out (a fourth species, S. haleakalaeSantalum haleakalaeSantalum haleakalae, known as Iliahi in Hawaiian, is a species of flowering tree in the European mistletoe family, Santalaceae, that is endemic to the island of Maui in the Hawaiian Islands, part of the United States...
, occurs only in subalpine areas and was never exported). Although S. freycinetianum and S. paniculatum are relatively common today, they have not regained their former abundance or size, and S. ellipticum remains rare. - Santalum spicatumSantalum spicatumSantalum spicatum, a species known as Australian sandalwood, is a tree native to semi-arid areas at the edge of Southwest Australia. It is traded as sandalwood and its valuable oil has been used as an aromatic, a medicine and a food source. S...
(Australian sandalwood) is used by aromatherapistsAromatherapyAromatherapy is a form of alternative medicine that uses volatile plant materials, known as essential oils, and other aromatic compounds for the purpose of altering a person's mind, mood, cognitive function or health....
and perfumers. The concentration differs considerably from other Santalum species. In the 1840s, sandalwood was Western Australia’s biggest export earner. Oil was distilled for the first time in 1875, and by the turn of the century there was intermittent production of Australian sandalwood oil.
Production
Unlike most trees, sandalwood is harvested by toppling the entire tree instead of sawing them down at the trunk close to ground level. This way, wood from the stump and root can also be used.
Fragrance
Sandalwood essential oil provides perfumes with a striking wood base noteNote (perfumery)
Notes in perfumery are descriptors of scents that can be sensed upon the application of a perfume. Notes are separated into three classes; top/head notes, middle/heart notes, and base notes; which denote groups of smells that can be sensed with respect to the time after the application of a perfume...
. Sandalwood smells somewhat like other wood scents, except it has a bright and fresh edge with few natural analogues. When used in smaller proportions in a perfume
Perfume
Perfume is a mixture of fragrant essential oils and/or aroma compounds, fixatives, and solvents used to give the human body, animals, objects, and living spaces "a pleasant scent"...
, it is an excellent fixative
Fixative (perfumery)
In perfumery, a fixative is a natural or synthetic substance used to reduce the evaporation rate and improve stability when added to more volatile components. This allows the final product to last longer while keeping its original fragrance. Fixatives are indispensable commodities to the perfume...
to enhance the head space of other fragrances.
Sandalwood oil is widely used in the cosmetic industry. The main source of true sandalwood, S. album, is a protected species, and demand for it cannot be met. Many species of plants are traded as "sandalwood". Within the genus Santalum alone, there are more than nineteen species. Traders will often accept oil from closely related species, such as various species in the genus Santalum, as well as from unrelated plants such as West Indian Sandalwood (Amyris
Amyris
Amyris is a genus of flowering plants in the citrus family, Rutaceae. The generic name is derived from the Greek word αμυρων , which means "intensely scented" and refers to the strong odor of the resin...
balsamifera) in the family Rutaceae
Rutaceae
Rutaceae, commonly known as the rue or citrus family, is a family of flowering plants, usually placed in the order Sapindales.Species of the family generally have flowers that divide into four or five parts, usually with strong scents...
or bastard sandalwood (Myoporum sandwicense
Myoporum sandwicense
Myoporum sandwicense is a species of flowering tree in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae. Common names include Naio, bastard sandalwood or false sandalwood. It is native to Hawaii and Mangaia in the Cook Islands.-Description:...
, Myoporaceae
Myoporaceae
Myoporaceae is a family of plants, found mostly in Australia, which includes the following genera:* Diocirea* Eremophila, also known as Emu Bush* Myoporum, also known as Boobiala...
). However, most woods from these alternative sources will lose their aroma within a few months or years.
Isobornyl cyclohexanol
Isobornyl cyclohexanol
Isobornyl cyclohexanol is an organic compound used primarily as a fragrance because of its aroma which is similar to sandalwood oil. Its chemical structure is closely related to that of both α-santolol and β-santolol, which are the primary constituents of sandalwood oil.Sandalwood trees are...
is a synthetic fragrance chemical produced as an alternative to the natural product.
Hinduism
Sandalwood paste is integral to rituals and ceremonies, to mark religious utensils and to decorate the icons of the deities. It is also distributed to devotees, who apply it to the forehead or the neck and chest. Preparation of the paste is a duty fit only for the pure, and is therefore entrusted in temples and during ceremonies only to priestsBrahmin
Brahmin Brahman, Brahma and Brahmin.Brahman, Brahmin and Brahma have different meanings. Brahman refers to the Supreme Self...
.
The paste is prepared by grinding wood by hand upon granite slabs shaped for the purpose. With slow addition of water a thick paste results, which is mixed with saffron
Saffron
Saffron is a spice derived from the flower of Crocus sativus, commonly known as the saffron crocus. Crocus is a genus in the family Iridaceae. Each saffron crocus grows to and bears up to four flowers, each with three vivid crimson stigmas, which are each the distal end of a carpel...
or other such pigments to make Chandana.
Sandalwood is considered in alternative medicine
Alternative medicine
Alternative medicine is any healing practice, "that does not fall within the realm of conventional medicine." It is based on historical or cultural traditions, rather than on scientific evidence....
to bring one closer to the divine. It gives a cool soothing effect to the body thus reducing the body heat. In Thirupathi after religious tonsure, Sandal paste is applied to protect the skin. Sandalwood essential oil is used for Ayurvedic purposes and treating anxiety
Anxiety
Anxiety is a psychological and physiological state characterized by somatic, emotional, cognitive, and behavioral components. The root meaning of the word anxiety is 'to vex or trouble'; in either presence or absence of psychological stress, anxiety can create feelings of fear, worry, uneasiness,...
.
Buddhism
Sandalwood is considered to be of the padma (lotusNelumbo nucifera
Nelumbo nucifera, known by a number of names including Indian Lotus, Sacred Lotus, Bean of India, or simply Lotus, is a plant in the monogeneric family Nelumbonaceae...
) group and attributed to Amitabha Buddha. Sandalwood scent is believed to transform one's desires and maintain a person's alertness while in meditation
Meditation
Meditation is any form of a family of practices in which practitioners train their minds or self-induce a mode of consciousness to realize some benefit....
. Sandalwood is also one of the more popular scents used for incense
Incense
Incense is composed of aromatic biotic materials, which release fragrant smoke when burned. The term "incense" refers to the substance itself, rather than to the odor that it produces. It is used in religious ceremonies, ritual purification, aromatherapy, meditation, for creating a mood, and for...
used when offering incense to the Buddha
Buddha
In Buddhism, buddhahood is the state of perfect enlightenment attained by a buddha .In Buddhism, the term buddha usually refers to one who has become enlightened...
.
Chinese and Japanese Religions
Sandalwood, along with agarwoodAgarwood
Agarwood or oodh is a dark resinous heartwood that forms in Aquilaria and Gyrinops trees when they become infected with a type of mold...
, is the most commonly used incense material by the Chinese
Religion in China
Religion in China has been characterized by pluralism since the beginning of Chinese history. The Chinese religions are family-oriented and do not demand the exclusive adherence of members. Some scholars doubt the use of the term "religion" in reference to Buddhism and Taoism, and suggest "cultural...
and Japanese
Religion in Japan
Most Japanese people do not exclusively identify themselves as adherents of a single religion; rather, they incorporate elements of various religions in a syncretic fashion known as . Shinbutsu Shūgō officially ended with the Shinto and Buddhism Separation Order of 1886, but continues in practice...
in worship and various ceremonies. It is used in Indian incense
Incense of India
right|thumb|320px|Incense being sold in an Indian market in [[Bangalore]]Indian incense is known as agarbattī in Hindi and other Indian languages. India has a rich tradition of incense making that goes back millennia...
, religiously or otherwise.
Zoroastrianism
ZoroastriansZoroastrianism
Zoroastrianism is a religion and philosophy based on the teachings of prophet Zoroaster and was formerly among the world's largest religions. It was probably founded some time before the 6th century BCE in Greater Iran.In Zoroastrianism, the Creator Ahura Mazda is all good, and no evil...
offer sandalwood twigs to the firekeeping priests
Mobad
A mobed or mobad is a Zoroastrian cleric of a particular rank. Unlike a herbad , a mobed is qualified to serve as celebrant priest at the Yasna ceremony. A mobed is also qualified to train other priests....
who offer the sandalwood to the fire
Atar
Atar is the Zoroastrian concept of holy fire, sometimes described in abstract terms as "burning and unburning fire" or "visible and invisible fire" ....
which keep the fire burning. Sandalwood is offered to all of the three grades of fire in the Fire temple
Fire temple
A fire temple in Zoroastrianism is the place of worship for Zoroastrians. Zoroastrians revere fire in any form. In the Zoroastrian religion, fire , together with clean water , are agents of ritual purity...
, including the Atash Dadgahs. Sandalwood is not offered to the divo, a homemade lamp. Often, money is offered to the mobad
Mobad
A mobed or mobad is a Zoroastrian cleric of a particular rank. Unlike a herbad , a mobed is qualified to serve as celebrant priest at the Yasna ceremony. A mobed is also qualified to train other priests....
along with the sandalwood. Sandalwood is called sukhar in the Zoroastrian community.
Zoroastrianism
Zoroastrianism is a religion and philosophy based on the teachings of prophet Zoroaster and was formerly among the world's largest religions. It was probably founded some time before the 6th century BCE in Greater Iran.In Zoroastrianism, the Creator Ahura Mazda is all good, and no evil...
The sandalwood in the fire temple is often more expensive to buy than at a Zoroastrian store. It is often a source of income
Revenue
In business, revenue is income that a company receives from its normal business activities, usually from the sale of goods and services to customers. In many countries, such as the United Kingdom, revenue is referred to as turnover....
for the fire temple.
Medicine
Sandalwood essential oil was popular in medicine up to 1920-1930, mostly as a urogenital (internal) and skin (external) antiseptic. Its main component beta-santalol (~90%) has antimicrobialAntimicrobial
An anti-microbial is a substance that kills or inhibits the growth of microorganisms such as bacteria, fungi, or protozoans. Antimicrobial drugs either kill microbes or prevent the growth of microbes...
properties.
It is used in aromatherapy
Aromatherapy
Aromatherapy is a form of alternative medicine that uses volatile plant materials, known as essential oils, and other aromatic compounds for the purpose of altering a person's mind, mood, cognitive function or health....
and to prepare soap
Soap
In chemistry, soap is a salt of a fatty acid.IUPAC. "" Compendium of Chemical Terminology, 2nd ed. . Compiled by A. D. McNaught and A. Wilkinson. Blackwell Scientific Publications, Oxford . XML on-line corrected version: created by M. Nic, J. Jirat, B. Kosata; updates compiled by A. Jenkins. ISBN...
s.
Due to this antimicrobial activity, it can be used to clear skin from blackheads and spots, but it must always be properly diluted with a carrier oil. Because of its strength, sandalwood oil
Sandalwood oil
Sandalwood oil is an essential oil obtained from the steam distillation of chips and billets cut from the heartwood of the Sandalwood tree. Sandalwood oil is used in perfumes, cosmetics, and sacred unguents.-Main Constituents:...
should never be applied to the skin without being diluted in a carrier oil.
Technology
Due to its low fluorescenceFluorescence
Fluorescence is the emission of light by a substance that has absorbed light or other electromagnetic radiation of a different wavelength. It is a form of luminescence. In most cases, emitted light has a longer wavelength, and therefore lower energy, than the absorbed radiation...
and optimal refractive index
Refractive index
In optics the refractive index or index of refraction of a substance or medium is a measure of the speed of light in that medium. It is expressed as a ratio of the speed of light in vacuum relative to that in the considered medium....
, sandalwood oil is often employed as an immersion oil within ultraviolet and fluorescence microscopy.
Distillation
Sandalwood is distilled in a four-step process, incorporating boiling, steaming, condensation and separation.Food
Australian Aboriginals eat the seed kernels, nuts, and fruit of local sandalwoods, such as quandong (Santalum acuminatumSantalum acuminatum
Santalum acuminatum, the desert quandong, is a hemiparasitic plant in the Sandalwood family Santalaceae, widely dispersed throughout the central deserts and southern areas of Australia....
).