Copal

In Mexico, copal is burned to honour the ancestors and the family line. The name comes from copalli, the Nahuatl word for incense. A piece on warm charcoal gives its aroma to a room within minutes.

This page covers what copal is, where it comes from, the three kinds we carry and how to burn each one.

What Copal Is

Copal is the resin of trees that grow in Mexico and South America. When the bark is cut, the tree gives a sap that hardens in the air. Warmed on charcoal, it gives its aroma to a room.

People across the Americas have burned copal for thousands of years. Many burn it to clear a space, to open an important day or to close one.

Three Kinds of Copal

White Copal · Mexico

The resin of the Bursera bipinnata tree. Many people burn it to purify a space and to open an important day. A soft resin: it melts on heat.

Black Copal Intenso · Mexico

Among the Maya, copal is called pom. Black copal is taken from the bark of the tree. Many people burn it to clear a home at the end of a day. A hard resin: it holds its shape on heat.

Black Copal · Peru

The resin of the Bursera copallifera tree. It is burned from the Andes to the Amazon, often to clear a space before a gathering. A soft resin: it melts on heat.

How to Burn It

Copal is burned on a charcoal disc in a burner made for heat. How you burn it depends on the kind.

White Copal and Black Copal from Peru: soft resins

1. Light a charcoal disc in the burner, on a heatproof surface.
2. Let it cool for about five minutes. No salt is needed.
3. Place one small piece straight on the charcoal. It melts as it warms. A large piece makes the aroma heavy and sharp.

Black Copal Intenso: a hard resin

1. Light a charcoal disc in the burner, on a heatproof surface.
2. Wait five to seven minutes, until it settles and turns grey.
3. Cover it with a layer of fine salt, never sand. This is our own method.
4. Place two or three pieces on the salt. You can lift them off with tongs at any time.
5. Remove the dark crust left behind, or it burns.

Burn in a ventilated room, and never leave charcoal unattended. For each step in detail, read How to Burn Resin on Charcoal: A Plain Guide.

Copal at Maison Éthérique

• White Copal · Mexico and White Copal · Mexico · 25 g
• Black Copal · Peru and Black Copal · Peru · 25 g

You will also need charcoal tablets and a burner. Each resin’s page offers the ones that go with it.

Black Copal Intenso is at the House. At Warehouse 23, Alserkal Avenue, you can smell the three side by side before you choose. We are open daily, 9 am to 9 pm.