Character
The Story of Mysore Sandalwood
Mysore Sandalwood is a rare, precious oil distilled from the heartwood of Santalum album trees in Karnataka, India. Once the world's most coveted aromatic ingredient, it carries creamy, warm, and quietly animalic facets that define a generation of oriental fragrances.
Heritage
Before World War I, India's Mysore sandalwood was shipped as raw timber to Germany for distillation, with European perfumers controlling the final product. When exports halted in 1914, the Maharajah of Mysore commissioned industrial director Alfred Chatterton to establish domestic extraction. With professors J. J. Sudborough and H. E. Watson at the Indian Institute of Science, India distilled its first homegrown sandalwood oil, shifting centuries of production control back to the source. The species held sacred status in Ayurvedic tradition, temple rituals, and ancient perfumery for millennia. In 2006, Mysore Sandalwood Oil received protection under India's Geographical Indications Act, recognising Karnataka as its sole authenticated origin. Despite this, decades of over-exploitation and black market pressure drove India to ban wild harvesting in 2010, making the original Mysore oil nearly unobtainable today.
At a Glance
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India
Primary source region
Ingredient Details
Steam distillation
Heartwood and roots
Did You Know
"Sandalwood trees must grow for 30 to 50 years before their heartwood develops the rich santalol concentration perfumers seek."