IIIF Color HighRes
National Institute of Informatics - Digital Silk Road Project
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| IIIF Color HighRes |
| Cathay and the Way Thither : vol.2 |
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Citation Information
AND THE INDIAN ARCHIPELAGO. 471
On the Indian Aloes-wood.
The Indian aloes is a tree like the oak, excepting that it has a thin bark. Its leaves are precisely like those of the oak, and it produces no fruit. Its trunk does not grow to any great size; its roots are long, and extend far from the tree ; in them resides the fragrance or aromatic principle.
In the country of the Mahomedans all trees of aloes-wood are considered property ; but in the infidel countries they arc generally left uncared for. Among them, however, those which grow at Kaula are cared for, and these give the aloes of the best quality. Such is the case also with those of Kamara, the aloes-wood of which is of high quality. These are sold to the people of Java (Sumatra) in exchange for cloths. There is also a special kind of Kamâri aloes which takes an impression like wax. As for that which is called 'Athées, they cut the roots, and put them under ground for
same thing. For this last is explained by Cesare Federici to be " a con-gelation in certain canes," and in the work of Da Uzzano (supra, p. 283), there is mention several times of Ispodio di Canna. (The Spodium of Marco Polo is a different substance ; as he describes it, a metallic slag).
The Malay camphor tree Dipterocarpus Camphora or Dryabalanops Camphora of botanists, is a large forest tree, confined, as far as is known, to a few parts of the islands of Sumatra and Borneo, but in these abundant. The oil, both in a fluid and solid state, is found in the body of the tree where the sap should be" (Crawfurd's Dict. of Ind. Isl.). The description in the text is yet more inapplicable to the Chinese camphor, obtained by distillation from the Cinnamomum Camphora.
Far nearer the truth is the description of Kazwini the Arabian geographer. He says the camphor is drawn both in a liquid state and in gummy particles from the branches and stem of a tree large enough to shade one hundred men. He had heard that a season of thunder and earthquakes was favourable to the production. Like Marco Polo he speaks of the camphor of Fansûr as the best; supposed to be the modern Barûs on the west side of Sumatra (Gildem., pp. 194, 209).
The word Hardalah, which Ibn Batuta applies to a species of camphor, does not seem to be known. I suspect he may have made a still further embroilment, and that what he has got hold of is the Malay Arta, corresponding to the Hindustani Hartal, " orpiment ; native sulphuret of arsenic."
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