J.D. Bauer Botanicals

Biblical Borith

5.0 oz

BIBLICAL BORITH - DEAD SEA MUD, FRANKINCENSE & CEDARWOOD SOAP Dead Sea mud. Frankincense. Cedarwood. Olive oil. This soap comes straight out of the pages of ancient history. Biblical Borith is one of the most special soaps I make-and judging by how quickly people buy it, I'm not the only one who thinks so. It smells amazing, but what really makes Biblical Borith different is the history behind it. Almost every major ingredient connects in some way to the ancient world of the Bible. And that story begins thousands of years ago. SOAP BEFORE THE BIBLE The ancient Middle East has an incredibly long tradition of soapmaking. Archaeologists have found soap-like material in clay cylinders from ancient Babylon dating to around 2800 B.C. Inscriptions describe fats being boiled with ashes. More than 4,000 years later, that's still recognizably soapmaking. And amazingly, I still use the basic principle of combining oils with alkali when I make soap today. WHAT IS "BORITH"? Soap or cleansing material appears in the Bible, where the Hebrew word borith is traditionally translated as "soap." Borith wasn't necessarily a bar of soap like the one sitting in your shower today. It referred to a cleansing substance associated with the ashes of certain plants. There is no surviving recipe telling us exactly how the ancient Israelites made their borith. So when I created mine, I asked a simple question: What ingredients would have belonged in their world? That's where this soap really gets interesting. DEAD SEA MUD I use real mud from the Dead Sea, one of the most extraordinary bodies of water on Earth and part of the landscape of the biblical world. The mineral-rich mud gives Biblical Borith its distinctive character and connects the bar directly to the land that inspired it. FRANKINCENSE Then comes frankincense-one of the great aromatics of the ancient world. It traveled along ancient trade routes, was prized throughout the Middle East, and became one of the most famous substances mentioned in the Bible. Its warm, resinous fragrance gives this bar an unmistakably ancient character. CEDARWOOD Cedar was enormously important to the peoples of the ancient Middle East and appears repeatedly in biblical history. Its deep, dry, woody fragrance gives Biblical Borith its foundation and balances beautifully with the frankincense. OLIVE OIL And of course, olive oil. I couldn't make a soap inspired by ancient Israel without it. Olive oil was fundamental to life throughout the ancient Mediterranean and biblical world, so I make Biblical Borith with organically grown virgin food-grade olive oil. Finally, I add orange for a little brightness. The oranges I use smell fantastic and give the darker, earthier fragrances a fresh citrus lift. The finished bar smells earthy, resinous, woody, smoky and slightly citrusy. It's unlike anything else I make. SCENT: Earthy * Resinous * Woody * Citrus NOTES: Frankincense * Cedarwood * Orange WITH: Real Dead Sea Mud OIL: Virgin Olive Oil INSPIRATION: Biblical Borith * Ancient Middle East Handmade in small batches by J.D. Bauer Botanicals. Yup. It's truly a soap of biblical proportions. And yes...it's all kosher.