Essential oils have been used for thousands of years as demonstrated by the depictions in Egyptian Hieroglyphics, the ancient Ebers papyrus, and items found in archeological digs.

Here we see an ancient oil jar from the tomb of King Tutankhamen.  The oils found in these jars were thousands of years old yet they were still viable.  In many tombs, the oil jars were stolen by thieves who actually left behind great valuables.    This speaks to the power of the oils and their value.

Today, we who are interested in the therapeutic aspects of essential oils sometimes have difficulty understanding the QUALITY of the oil.

If we think in terms of preserving the oil in a condition as near to that which it had in the plant, we can begin to understand.    I have located a photo of what is thought to be one of the first oil distillation pots ever found.  It is estimated to be 5,500 years old.

As you can see from the bottom illustration, the design of the pot allows it to be placed over the fire or even into a larger pot of boiling water… the plant matter in the bottom of this pot will warm and as the moisture turns to steam, it will lift the essential oil molecules from the plant matter.   The dome top allows the oil and steam to condense and run into the rim where it can be collected.  The oil and water will separate naturally and the oil can be skimmed for use, leaving the hydrosol for other therapeutic benefits.

Ancient distillation techniques did not have the capability of adding pressure to increase the temperatures and decrease distillation time.  They did not have the ability to produce man-made molecules in a laboratory, and so this technique yields an oil that is closest in purity to the state it was in the plant.    This is why at Young Living, care is taken in the distillation process and testing is done prior to harvest to assure that the plant is at the maturity that will yield the best quality oil.    After all, if a critical molecule has not been formed yet, after the plant is cut, the ability of the plant to make it is over.

When selecting an essential oil for therapeutic benefit, be careful to ask the producer about the growing, harvest, testing, distillation and processing methods.  It is not enough to meet AFNOR standards and “organic” speaks to pesticides, not to these other aspects of therapeutic quality.

A great book on this topic is “Healing Oils of the Bible” by David Stewart, PhD.

Photos are taken from “The Healing Hand” by Guido Majno, M.D. and from “The Secret medicine of the Pharaohs” by Cornelius Stetter.