Royal Sandalwood Incense Sticks

The Royal grade uses heartwood from mature trees - typically thirty years or older, when α-santalol concentration in the wood reaches its peak. The wood is ground fine, bound with traditional Indian aromatic binders, and hand-rolled into sticks with no bamboo core. The stick is the wood, plus the binder that holds it together; no synthetic fragrance, no carrier dowel.

1. Hold the tip to a flame until it catches (5–10 seconds).
2. Blow the flame out so the stick smoulders.
3. Place in an incense holder on a heat-safe surface.
4. The first three minutes carry a creamy-woody opening; the burn deepens into resinous warmth.
5. Allow ash to cool fully before clearing.

Burns for approximately 30–40 minutes per stick. Ventilate the room as the burn progresses.

• Botanical: Santalum album
• Common name: Indian Sandalwood · White Sandalwood · Mysore Sandalwood
• Grade: Royal — premium heartwood
• Origin: Mysore region, Karnataka, India
• Source name: candana (Sanskrit) · srigandha (Kannada) · sandal (Arabic)
• Form: Hand-rolled stick · no bamboo core · ~10cm
• Quantity: 35
• Burn time: ~30–40 minutes per stick
• Dominant compound: α-santalol (~50% of essential oil)
• Storage: Cool, dry, away from light

The Maharaja of Mysore established the Government Sandal Oil Factory at Mysore in 1916, formalising what had been a centuries-old regional craft into a state industry. Karnataka still produces the majority of the world's high-grade Santalum album oil; the Mysore Sandalwood Geographical Indication tag was granted by the Indian government in 2006, protecting the regional designation.