Shemen Afarsimon

[3] According to Adin Steinsaltz, the afarsimon of the Talmud was considered very valuable, and worth its weight in gold.

According to one theory, it is the plant Commiphora opobalsamum - a small shrub, 10 to 12 feet high, with wandlike, spreading branches.

The find was announced by the New York Times on February 15, 1989,[5] and a feature article was published in National Geographic Magazine in October of that year.

[6] After testing by the Pharmaceutical Department of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem (the results of which were never detailed or revealed), the substance inside the juglet was claimed by Jones to be the shemen afarsimon hinted at in Psalm 133.

According to Jones, it was the first artifact discovered from the First Temple Period, and one of the treasures listed in the Copper Scroll.