false myrrh

Myrrh \Myrrh\, n. [OE. mirre, OF. mirre, F. myrrhe, L. myrrha,
   murra, Gr. ?; cf. Ar. murr bitter, also myrrh, Heb. mar
   bitter.]
   A gum resin, usually of a yellowish brown or amber color, of
   an aromatic odor, and a bitter, slightly pungent taste. It is
   valued for its odor and for its medicinal properties. It
   exudes from the bark of a shrub of Abyssinia and Arabia, the
   {Commiphora Myrrha} (syn. {Balsamodendron Myrrha}) of the
   family {Burseraceae}, or from the {Commiphora abyssinica}.
   The myrrh of the Bible is supposed to have been partly the
   gum above named, and partly the exudation of species of
   {Cistus}, or rockrose.
   [1913 Webster]

   {False myrrh}. See the Note under {Bdellium}.
      [1913 Webster]
    

bdellium \bdel"lium\, n. [L., fr. Gr. bde`llion; cf. Heb.
   b'dolakh bdellium (in sense 1).]
   1. An unidentified substance mentioned in the Bible (--Gen.
      ii. 12, and --Num. xi. 7), variously taken to be a gum, a
      precious stone, or pearls, or perhaps a kind of amber
      found in Arabia.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. A gum resin of reddish brown color, brought from India,
      Persia, and Africa.
      [1913 Webster]

   Note: {Indian bdellium} or {false myrrh} is an exudation from
         {Balsamodendron Roxburghii}. Other kinds are known as
         {African bdellium}, {Sicilian bdellium}, etc.
         [1913 Webster]