THE RESIN OF CHIOS MASTIC TREE

THE RESIN OF CHIOS MASTIC TREE
An old product with modern use
Dr MARIANNA
HAGIDIMITRIOU
Assistant Professor
Pomology Laboratory
Crop Science Department
Agricultural University
of Athens-Greece

THE MASTIC TREE
PISTACIA LENTISCUS VAR. CHIA
The Mastic tree (Pistacia lentiscus var. chia) is a
dioecious evergreen shrub or small tree belonging to
the Anacardiaceae family
It is cultivated for its aromatic resin on the Greek
island of Chios, in the Aegean Sea
Mastic tree thrives and gives mastic only in the south
part of the island of Chios and nowhere else in the
world

Historical Background
Fossils of mastic tree leaves found on the island reveal
its existence on the island six thousand years ago
suggesting that its origin comes from this island
Herodotos, on the 5th century BC, mentions that the
resin product from the phloem of the mastic tree was
used for chewing
Hippocrates suggests the mastic resin as a cure and
Diomides mentions its therapeutic usage in his work
The Greek physician and botanist Dioscorides wrote
about the medicinal properties of mastic in his classic
treatise De Materia Medica

Chios island and the Mastic Villages in the south part of it,
where the mastic tree is cultivated

Mastic resin

Mastic resin has been used as a chewing gum and as a
medicine for gastrointestinal ailments for several
thousand years
Mastic is known to have been popular in Roman times
when children chewed it
In Medieval times it was highly prized for the Sultan’s
harem both as a breath refreshener and for cosmetics
The spice's use was widened when Chios became part
of the Ottoman Empire

Nowadays, about 2.000.000 mastic trees are cultivated
in the south part of the island
Mastic is collected in raw form and it is concentrated,
standardized, packed and traded by the Chios' Gum
Mastic Growers Association having 4,850 members
The Association was created in 1938 to help
commercialize the product and ensure the income of
the growers
The Association ensures the quality of the product by
utilizing modern technology in process and packing,
and by constantly increasing the production volumes
encouraging new cultivations

Geographical Distribution
Attempts to cultivate and produce the high quality
resin produced from these trees in other areas of the
world were unsuccessful
The island's climate is warm and moderate,
categorized as Mediterannean
Average temperatures normally range from a summer
high of 27°C to a winter low of 11°C in January
Temperatures of over 40°C or below freezing can
sometimes be encountered

Rainfall while usually plentiful, varies greatly both
throughout the year and between years
Rain is rare during the summer months, but the
winters are changeable and wet
Sunshine is plentiful, as is typical of the Eastern
Mediterranean, with almost no cloud cover in the
summer months
Average humidity varies from 75% in winter to 60%
in summer

Botany
Pistacia lentiscus var. chia can grow as irregular shrub
or a single to multistemmed tree, up to 3-4 m tall
The flowers grow in dense panicles or spikes and the
anthers are dark red for male flowers and grenish for
female
The leaves are dark green, with 6-18 leaflets, leathery
pinnate and distinctive for the lack of an end leaflet
Blooming time is in mid May to July

Mastic Tree

Mastic Tree Orchard

Flowers and leaves of Mastic tree

leaf of Mastic tree

Genotypes
In studies for the genetic relationships among Pistacia
species, Pistacia lentiscus var. chia was grouped
together with the evergreen Pistacia lentiscus, male
and female
The deciduous Pistacia species (P. vera, P. palaestina
and P. terebinthus) were grouped in a different
branch
The male mastic tree gives the highest and best
quality resin

Pistacia
species relationships
RAPD AFLP

Morphological characteristics suggest the existence of
different genotypes in the male mastic tree
The different genotypes also differ in quantity and
quality of the resin production
The four major genotypes of the male mastic tree,
‘Votomos’, ‘Maroulitis’, ‘Mavroskinos’ and
‘Siderakikos’, have distinct phenotypes and can be
easily identified

Different male genotypes
VOTOMOS

Different male genotypes
MAROULITIS

Different male genotypes
MAVROSCHINOS

Different male genotypes
SIDERAKIKOS

The genetic diversity among the different male
genotypes and the female mastic tree was also studied
using two different molecular techniques, RAPD and
ISSRs
Based on the molecular results, the entries showed
genetic diversity among the genotypes and within the
different individuals
The female tree was grouped separately from the four
different male genotypes

Genetic relationships among genotypes
SIDERAKIKOS-1MW
0.24 0.37 0.50
Coefficient
0.62 0.75
SIDERAKIKOS-1
SIDERAKIKOS-2
MAYROSXINOS-1
MAYROSXINOS-2
MAYROSXINOS-3
BOTOMOS-1
BOTOMOS-2
MAROULITIS-1
MAROULITIS-2
MAROULITIS-3
FEMALE

Orchard management - Harvest
The mastic tree is an evergreen shrub resistant to
drought, with a slow growth and lives over a hundred
years
The male tree gives the highest quantity and best
quality resin, starting on the 5 th -6 th year with highest
production after the 15 th year
Care for the mastic groves is a year-round job carried
out by the families of the mastic-producers’ union

The winter months involve pruning and thinning of
the branches, followed by clearing and weeding the
area under the trees until it is smooth
The preparation of the mastic tree and collection of
mastic is a laborious job that starts at the beginning
of June, and is carried on until September or October
The collection of mastic begins with first cleaning the
area under the tree and then covering it with white
clay
This way the tears will stay clear and dry faster as
they fall onto the ground

Cleaning the area under the tree

Covering the area under the tree with
white clay

Different tools used for mastic tree
preparation
and mastic resin collection

The ‘kendos’ begins in June and lasts through
September
The mastic producers make an incision along the tree
trunk and branches of every tree, twice a week, in the
shape of an arch with the ‘kentitiri’
The incision is 4-5 mm deep and 10-15 mm long
A tree can receive between 20 and 100 slits, depending
on its age.

Incision on the tree branches (kentima)
with ‘kentitiri’

Mastic resin

Mastic ‘tears’

When the tears have been coagulated, the mastic
collectors use the ‘timitiri’ to gather the precious
crystals
The resin usually takes 10 to 20 days to crystallize and
the first harvest during the second half of August yields
bigger tears
The mastic collectors start then the sifting, the cleaning
of the crystals with soap and cold water, the drying and
the scratching of the mastic tears

‘Timitiri’ for collecting the resin crystals

Resin crystals on the ground

‘Koskina’ for shifting

Cleaning the mastic resin

Resin from the ground (left) and cleaned (right)

The second harvest lasts from mid-September until
mid-October or the first rain storm, while cleaning
the crystals for processing may last until pruning time
The collection is governed by a law according which it
is prohibited to make cuttings on gum mastic trees
and gum mastic collection before July 15 th and after
October 15 th , every year
The last date can be extended for a fortnight by the
prefect’s permission

Characteristics of mastic resin
Mastic gum looks like rock candy and has a
distinctive taste and chewiness

The product in raw form is available in different
grades, 1 to 5, and in different sizes, large tears and
small tears
The grades define the purity of the product
Grade 1 is the most pure mastic suitable for direct
human consumption
Grade 3 to 5 is suitable for all other uses and may
contain different tear sizes and small tree remains

The chemical analysis of mastic resin:
- essential oil (mastic oil) 1 - 3%
- a- and b-masticinic acid 4%
- masticholic acid 0.5%
- a- mastichonic acid 20%
- b mastichonic acid 18%
- a-mastic resin 30%
- b-mastic resin 20%
The mastic oil contains dozens of identified chemical
compounds

Medicinal, pharmaceutical, culinary and
cosmetic uses
Mastic resin is a highly commercialized product due
to its:
medicinal, cosmetic, pharmaceutical and industrial
applications
The most precious of all mastic products, mastic oil,
is used widely in medicine, pharmaceutical industry
and dentistry

Mastic oil contains perillyl alcohol, that has been found
to be effective in both preventing and treating various
cancers
Mastic resin heals also pectic ulcers by killing
Hellicobacter pylori which causes peptic ulcers, gastritis
and duodenitis
Natural mastic gum has also been proven to absorb
cholesterol thus diminishing chances of heart attacks
and high blood pressure, and helps reduce triglycerid
and total lipid levels of the organism

Mastic gum is also used as a flavouring for spirits and
liquors, such as Chios's native drinks of Mastichato &
masticha
Is also used in a number of cakes, pastries, spoon
sweets and desserts and is an important ingredient in
Greek festival breads
Mastic is also used in cosmetics such as toothpaste,
lotions for the hair and skin and perfumes

Mastic products
resin crystals in different sizes

Natural mastic grounded

Mastic oil

Chewing gum with Chios gum mastic

Masticha dessert ‘ipovrichio’

Mastic pie and sweets

Spoon sweets with mastic taste

Cookies and refreshments with mastic taste

Liqueur Masticha

Cosmetics
Toothpastes

Shower gel and Body lotion "Mastic care"

Body creams

Skin Care and Soaps

The Mastich shop of the Grower association

Mastich shop