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| Soap in vat |
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| Soap cooling |
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| Drying the soaps |
From our friends Maja and Mättu we received an Aleppo soap which they had bought during a stay in Syria. I had never heart of Aleppo soap and so I got to know it's impressive and magic history.
Aleppo is an antic town in Syria (I guess you sadly all know...) where this legendary, natural soap is produced. It's history goes back as far as 2000 years and it is still produced the traditional way up to this day. The soap also mentioned in the bible.
It is said that Jesus and his followers used and appreciated it.
The Arabs brought the soap to Massilla (now known as Marseille). The inhabitants of Marseille started to produce their own version of the soap principally using olive oil.
So the Aleppo soap is clearly the forerunner of the soap of Provence.
Production of the Aleppo soaps starts in November after the harvest of olives and ends in March. The soap consists of olive oil, soda (made from sea salt) and laurel oil. It's the latter that makes the quality, character and the fragrant of the soap. The soaps are cut and stamped by hand and dried for the duration of at least 9 months. The longer the drying lasts, the more valuable the soap gets. When watching the video you'll see under what circumstances the soaps are produced. It's a world which here is history since long, very long and that's what it makes even more precious.
No preservatives or other ingredients are added, it has never been tested on animals and it is completely biodegradable. It can be used for the face, body and hair. It has a lot of fantastic qualities: It is said to be helpful with psoriasis, allergies, eczemas, dandruff, it can be used as a facial mask and it helps soothing insect bites and it keeps of the moths from your clothes cupboard.
I am so impressed by all this! When holding the soap I feel like holding a piece of history in my hands and it makes me feel deeply grateful and down-to-earth.
By the way: The soap's smell is special and unusual at the beginning. When you have adopted - you think it is most wonderful and very natural.
Last but not least:
Let's also think about the people in Syria who are undergoing very hard times
of suffering, suppression and death.
♥ Emilie's daughter ♥
