Some of you may be familiar with “Dragon’s Blood” as a scent or even as an ink. Last week I came across some — not in a lotion or solution, but in its basic rock-like form. When I thought to myself, “Huh, this is kinda neat, I wonder where it comes from,” little did I know the complicated answer I’d find!

The confusing thing about dragon’s blood is that there are actually two types of it out there in the world. (Or more, depending on whether or not your world includes dragons. 😉 ) Both come from trees. One, a historical variety called “medieval dragon’s blood,” is dried sap from the tropical tree Dracaena cinnabari. The other, often called “Indonesian dragon’s blood” to differentiate it from its older cousin, is derived from the seeds of Daemonorops draco. Apparently the Indonesian variety is easier to collect and more widely available today. But for those interested in recreating historic recipes, the medieval version is the intended ingredient (and it does react differently than its look-alike).

Just goes to show that even the simplest of things can be deceiving! 😀

Naturally, in order to boil down all my knowledge into those few sentences above, I had to wade through many confusing blog posts and articles trying to keep all the latin names and provenances straight. It turned out to be a fun little mystery, so the work was worth it. Now here’s hoping that grinding up the resins and trying to make a little ink of them is just as rewarding! 🙂

Selected Resources

The clearest article about the two types of dragon’s blood that I found (finally!) is from the Otherworld Apothecary.

There’s also a neat breakdown of the physical process of grinding up resins at Apothecary’s Garden.