there, and ten remained when Belon travelled in Egypt, but only one existed in the 18th century. By the 19th century, there appeared to be none. Modern The German botanist Schweinfurth (1836–1925) claimed to he have reconstructed the ancient process of balsam production. At present the tree Commiphora gileadensis grows wild in the valley of Mecca where it is called . Many strains of this species are found, some in Somalia and Yemen. Lexicon Hebrew tsori In the Hebrew Bible, the balm of Gilead is tsori or tseri ( or ). It is a merchandise in Gen. 37:25 and Ez. 27:17, a gift in Gen. 43:11, and a medicament (for national disaster, in fig.) in Jer. 8:22, 46:11, 51:8. The Hebrew root z-r-h () means "run blood, bleed" (of vein), with cognates in Arabic (, an odoriferous tree or its gum), Sabaean (), Syriac (, possibly fructus pini), and Greek (, in meaning). The similar word tsori () denotes the adjective "Tyrean", i. e. from the Phoenician city of Tyre. Many attempts have been made to identify the tsori, but none can be considered conclusive. The Samaritan Pentateuch (Gen. 37:25) and the Syriac bible (Jer. 8:22) translate it as wax (cera). The Septuagint has , "pine resin". The Arabic version and Castell hold it for theriac. Lee supposes it to be "mastich". Luther and the Swedish version have "salve", "ointment" in the passages in Jer., but in Ezek. 27:17 they read "mastic". Gesenius, Hebrew commentators (Kimchi, Junius, Tremellius, Deodatius), and the Authorized Version (except in Ezek. 27:17, rosin) have balm, balsam, Greek , Latin . Hebrew nataf Besides the tseri, another Hebrew word, nataph (), mentioned in Ex. 30:34, as an ingredient of the holy incense, is taken by Hebrew commentators for opobalsamum; this, however, is perhaps rather stacte. Hebrew bosem Another Hebrew word, (), Aramaic (), Arabic (), appears in various forms throughout the Hebrew Bible. It is usually translated as "spice, perfume, sweet odour, balsam, balsam-tree". The Greek βάλσαμον can be interpreted as a combination of the Hebrew words (בַּעַל) "lord; master; the Phoenician god Baal" and shemen (שֶׁמֶן) "oil", thus "Lord of Oils" (or "Oil of Baal"). Greek balsamon Greek authors use the words (Theophrastus, Aristotle) for the balsam plant and its resin, while Galen, Nicander and the Geoponica consider it an aromatic herb, like mint. The word is probably Semitic. ὁπο-βάλσᾰμον (Theophrastus) is the juice of