Shilajit

[6] Since ancient times, shilajit has been a folk medicine in Afghanistan, India, Iran, China, Pakistan, Nepal, Central Asia and Tibet.

[2][8][9] D'Herbelot, in his 1821 publication, stated that the Persians used the substance called mumiay, or mummy, as a potent cure-all to address broken bones and disease.

Research by the Central State Geographical Exploration Center "Tsentrquartz Gems" has shown that deposits of shilajit, despite the wide geography of their location, are very rare, and the reserves of raw materials in them are limited.

[citation needed] The substance is known by different names, including Salajeet (Urdu: سلاجیت) in Pakistan, μούμια (in Greek), mumiyo or mumie (Russian: Мумиё), brag-shun or barakhshin ("oil of the mountains" in Mongolia and southern Russian Siberian regions near the Sayan Mountains such as Khakassia and Buryatia), rock sap or rock juice (in Tibet, Central Asia, Himalaya, Pamir and Altai), asphalt, mineral pitch, Jew's pitch, slag or mineral wax (in English), silajita or silajatu (in Bengali), hajarul-Musa or araq-al-jibal (in Arabic), myemu, moomiaii or mumnaei (in Persian), Mumie (in German), kao-tun ("blood of the mountain" in Myanmar) and "blessing of nature" (Nepal).

[13] Some researchers hypothesize that shilajit is produced by the decomposition or humification of latex and resin-bearing plant material from species such as Euphorbia royleana and Trifolium repens over a period of centuries.

It is a highly viscous substance like a tar or resin, that is very dark brown or black in color, but unlike these is readily soluble in water but insoluble in ethanol.