Somaliland fosters trade in frankincense and myrrh

By Tristan McConnell - GlobalPost
Published: December 25, 2010 07:45 ET in Africa

Somalia's trees produce a flourishing trade in frankincense and myrrh in the quasi-independent state of Somaliland. (Tony Karumba/AFP/Getty Images)

HARGEISA, Somaliland — In the mist forests of the Golis Mountains in northern Somalia, clouds roll in off the sea. Up and over the mountain ridges, they evaporate into the desert air.
There, in the southern slopes, stumpy trees grow as if anchored to the mountainside by some unknown force. From the hand-slashed bark of these stubborn, spiky trees leak droplets of a gum that hardens into a chewy resin.
These aromatic gums are the biblical frankincense and myrrh. Harvested and dried, they have been highly valued trade items for thousands of years. The gums are simply processed and exported. They look like dirty little stones, and they find their way out of Somalia's wild north and into European perfumes, Christian churches, Arabian households and Chinese medicines.Read More