The Nature LibraryEN·ES
← The ApothecaryPinaceaewood and its essential oil, resin, tar (dry-distilled wood), cones, leaves (needles)Fact-checked 23 October 2026

Cedar of Lebanon

Cedrus libani

Also calledSedir / katran (Turkish; katran is the tar)

The cedar of the Bible and of ancient Egyptian craft, whose wood, resin and tar have been used in embalming, on wounds and against insects. Lab and animal studies show antimicrobial, wound-healing and anti-inflammatory activity, but it has never been tested as a medicine in people.

Full natural-history sheet →

What it is used for

  • Cone and leaf extracts and the wood oil were active against herpes simplex virus type 1 in cell culture. No human data.3

  • Cedar tar killed and repelled cat fleas and brown dog ticks in laboratory tests; this is veterinary research, not human medicine.4

  • Wounds and cuts
    Traditional

    Resin and tar ('katran') are applied to wounds, eczema and warts in Turkish folk medicine. Cone essential oil sped wound healing in rat and mouse models.1,2

  • External use of the resin for eczema is recorded in an ethnobotanical survey from Mersin, Turkey; there are no clinical studies.1

  • The resin is taken internally for stomach ache in Turkish folk medicine. Not tested; essential oils and tar are not safe to swallow in quantity.1

How it is prepared

ointment / salve

Resin or tar applied to the skin, traditionally sometimes mixed with fat or beeswax.

Wounds and cuts · Eczema and dermatitis

Amounts are as recorded by the named source, not a recommendation.

Safety

Pregnancy
Avoid
Breastfeeding
Insufficient data
Children
Keep essential oils away from children; swallowing essential oils is dangerous for them.

Do not use if

  • Allergy to conifer resins

Side effects

  • Skin irritation or allergic contact dermatitis from oil, resin or tar

Toxicity

Essential oils and tar are not for internal use; no human toxicity data specific to this species were found.

In the healing traditions

  • Ancient Egyptian medicine and embalming

    'Cedar oil'

    Herodotus lists 'cedar oil' among embalming materials. Chemical analysis of mummy balms has found himachalene-type compounds pointing to Cedrus libani, and cedar tar made by dry distillation.

    Herodotus (about 450 BC)

  • Turkish folk medicine

    Sedir / katran

    Resin internally for stomach ache; resin and tar externally for wounds, eczema and warts. One of the most frequently cited medicinal plants in a Mersin survey.

  • Middle Eastern

    Cedar of Lebanon

    Used in Lebanese traditional medicine for infectious diseases.

    As reported in Phytomedicine 2008

Active compounds

himachalenes (α-, β-) and himachalol
main sesquiterpenes of the wood oil; markers used to identify cedar in mummy balms
germacrene D and β-caryophyllene
main components of leaf extracts and oil
α-pinene and β-myrcene
main components of the cones

History

Herodotus (about 450 BC) named 'cedar oil' among Egyptian embalming materials, a point long disputed. Modern chemistry of Egyptian balms and jars has found himachalene compounds pointing to Cedrus libani, and cedar tar made by dry distillation has been identified in mummification balms of 664–332 BC.

Sources

  1. 1.An ethnobotanical study of medicinal plants in Mersin (Turkey). Front Pharmacol 2021
  2. 2.Wound repair and anti-inflammatory potential of essential oils from cones of Pinaceae: preclinical research in animal models. J Ethnopharmacol 2011
  3. 3.Phytochemical analysis and in vitro evaluation of the biological activity against herpes simplex virus type 1 of Cedrus libani. Phytomedicine 2008
  4. 4.Insecticidal potential of Cedrus libani tar against cat flea from different populations in Türkiye. Heliyon 2024
  5. 5.Phytochemical and pharmacological properties of essential oils from Cedrus species. Nat Prod Res 2018
  6. 6.Organic chemistry of embalming agents in Pharaonic and Graeco-Roman mummies. Nature 2001
  7. 7.An archaeo-metabolomics approach for identifying cedar tar in archaeological samples. Sci Rep 2026
  8. 8.Cedrus libani distribution in Lebanon: past, present and future. C R Biol 2010

Reference, not prescription. Nothing here is medical advice. Herbs can interact with medicines and be dangerous in pregnancy; tell your doctor or pharmacist about anything you take.