Myrrh is the dried oleo gum resin of a number of Commiphora species of trees. Like frankincense, it is produced by the tree as a reaction to a purposeful wound through the bark and into the sapwood. The trees are bled in this way on a regular basis. The princial species is Commiphora myrrha, which is native to Yemen, Somalia, and the eastern parts of Ethiopia. Another primary species is C. momol. The related Commiphora gileadensis, native to Israel/Palestine and Jordan, is the biblically referenced 'balm of gilead'.
myrrh tree
balm of Gilead (gĭl'ēəd), name for several plants belonging to different taxonomic families. The historic Old World balm of Gilead, or Mecca balsam, is a small evergreen tree (Commiphora gileadensis, also once called C. opobalsamum) of the family Burseraceae (incense-tree family) native to Africa and Asia and the source of the commercial balm of Gilead; it is referred to in the Bible in Jer. 8.22. The Ishmaelites from Gilead were bearing balm when they bought Joseph from his brothers. Balm of Gilead is still in high repute for healing in some countries.
The origins of myrrh and frankincense can be traced to the Arabian Peninsula. The region which produces frankincense, myrrh, cassia and cinnamon,
The Magi, carrying myrrh, frankincense, and gold, came from the East: Arabia. The frankincense trade route, with transport by donkeys and later by camel caravans, reached Jerusalem and Egypt from the Dhofar region of what is today Oman, through Yemen, turning north to follow the Red Sea coast. It is likely that the same or similar species of the resin-bearing plants grew across the Red Sea in the area that is now Somalia and Ethiopia, while the collection of the gum resins was initiated in Arabia.