The List of Ingredients in the Temple Incense: The ‘Ketoret’ Formula in Detail (Keritot 6a)

Notes, unrelated to the piece:

• I'll be giving a talk today (June 10, 2025) at a major academic conference, on the topic of "AI-Assisted Editing and Analysis of Rabbinic Texts – The Role of Generative AI in the Digital Age”. At the conference “The Israeli International Conference on Digital Humanities and Social Sciences”, hosted at the Open University campus in Raanana.¹

• I recently published a new piece on my Academia page on ‘kal va-ḥomer’ (A Fortiori Argument) in the Talmud, collecting a large number of sources, and focusing on the literary formula and structure.²

Keritot 6a presents a baraita³ cataloging the precise ingredients and preparation method of the ketoret (קטרת - incense offering), the incense used in the Temple’s inner sanctum.

Overview

See Wikipedia, “Incense offering” (with slight adjustments):

The incense offering (Hebrew: קְטֹרֶת‎ qəṭōreṯ) in Judaism was related to perfumed offerings on the altar of incense in the time of the Tabernacle and the First and Second Temple period, and was an important component of priestly liturgy in the Temple in Jerusalem.

The sacred incense prescribed for use in the wilderness Tabernacle was made of costly materials that the congregation contributed [...]

The incense altar was at the end of the Sanctuary of the tabernacle, next to the curtain dividing it off from the Holy of Holies.

According to the Books of Chronicles, there was also a similar incense altar in Solomon's temple in Jerusalem.

Every morning and evening the sacred incense was burned.

Once a year, on Yom Kippur, coals from the altar were taken in a censer, or fire holder, together with two handfuls of incense, into the Holy of Holies, where the incense was made to smoke before the mercy seat of the ark of the testimony.

The Book of Exodus lists four components of the incense,⁴ while the Talmud lists seven additional components [...]

The four components from the Book of Exodus are:

1. Stacte (נָטָף naṭaf)

2. Onycha (שְׁחֵלֶת sheħeleth)

3. Galbanum (חֶלְבְּנָה ħelbbinah)

4. Pure frankincense (לְבוֹנָה זָךְ levonah zakh) [...]

According to the Talmud, the House of Avtinas was responsible for compounding the qetoret incense in the days of the Second Temple.

And see Wikipedia, “Incense offering in rabbinic literature”:

The correct blend of sweet spices and aromatic condiments used in making the incense offering was a carefully guarded secret at the time of its offering, fully known only by the compounders of the incense offering to prevent its replication in the worship of foreign gods.

The priests of the House of Avtinas, who were charged with preparing the incense during the Second Temple period, kept the technique and exact proportions secret, for which the rabbis rebuked them according to the Mishnah⁵ [...]

Bible Verses (Exodus 30, verses 7, 34-38)

Exodus.30.7:⁶

והקטיר עליו אהרן קטרת סמים

בבקר בבקר

בהיטיבו את־הנרת יקטירנה

On it [=the Altar of incense] Aaron shall burn incense of spices (קטרת סמים)

every morning

he shall burn it when he tends the lamps

Ibid., verses 34-38:⁷

ויאמר יהוה אל־משה:

קח־לך סמים

1. נטף

2. ושחלת

3. וחלבנה סמים

4. ולבנה זכה

בד בבד יהיה

And YHWH said to Moses:

Take the herbs

1. Stacte (נטף),

2. Onycha (שחלת),

3. Galbanum (חלבנה)—these herbs together with

4. Pure (זכה) frankincense (לבנה);

let there be an equal part of each.

ועשית אתה קטרת רקח מעשה רוקח

• ממלח

• טהור

• קדש

ושחקת ממנה הדק

ונתתה ממנה לפני העדת באהל מועד אשר אועד לך שמה

קדש קדשים תהיה לכם

Make them into incense, a compound expertly blended,

• refined (ממלח),

• pure,

• sacred.

Grind (שחקת) some of it finely (הדק) [into powder],

and put some before the Pact (עדת) in the Tent of Meeting (אהל מועד), where I will meet (אועד) with you;

it shall be most holy to you.

והקטרת אשר תעשה

במתכנתה לא תעשו לכם

קדש תהיה לך ליהוה

איש אשר־יעשה כמוה

להריח בה

ונכרת מעמיו

But when you make this incense,

you must not make any in the same proportions (מתכנתה) for yourselves;

it shall be held by you sacred to YHWH.

Whoever makes any like it,

to smell of it,

shall be cut off (נכרת - karet) from his kin.

Our Baraita

This isn’t a simple recipe. It’s a halakhically binding formulation with exact weights, ritual implications, and theological boundaries.

The list includes 11 core spices measured in maneh,⁸ alongside additional auxiliary substances.

The incense is structured into tiers: four main ingredients at 70 maneh each (balm, onycha, galbanum, frankincense); four mid-tier spices at 16 maneh (myrrh, cassia, spikenard, saffron); and three minor ones with varying amounts (costus - 12, aromatic bark - 3, cinnamon - 9). In addition, practical agents like Kersannah lye and Cyprus wine are added to refine texture and fragrance.

The text insists on perfection. Honey, which might enhance smell, is banned. Leaving out even one spice makes the offerer liable to capital punishment. Such stringency implies the incense isn’t just sensory—it’s sacramental.

Tannatic sages clarify terminology and intent. R' Shimon redefines ‘balm’ as tree resin, not bark. The wine and lye serve to prepare ingredients, not to scent the incense directly. And although fermented urine would perform better, it’s banned on grounds of dignity (kavod ha-mikdash).

Scientific and Comparative Perspectives on the Temple Incense Formula

The incense formula preserved in Keritot 6a offers a window into ancient perfumery, pharmacology, and ritual chemistry.

While the Talmud treats the ketoret as sacred and inviolable, its ingredients and preparation reflect a broader Mediterranean and Near Eastern tradition of compound aromatics used for both religious and medicinal purposes.⁹

Several of the listed substances—frankincense, myrrh, saffron, and cinnamon—were core to ancient trade networks and are still pharmacologically active compounds today.

Modern chemical analysis confirms that these resins and spices contain volatile oils with antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, and even psychoactive properties.

Frankincense (Boswellia) and myrrh (Commiphora) produce smoke rich in sesquiterpenes and monoterpenes, which can affect mood and cognitive state.

Galbanum, though foul-smelling alone, is a known fixative in perfumery—helping preserve and carry other scents.

The baraita’s insistence on wine and alkaline lye for processing onycha points to a rudimentary understanding of chemical extraction and cleansing.

Soaking with wine (ethanol) would help release aromatic compounds, while alkalis saponify fats and remove grime—both basic but effective techniques still used in botanical extraction today.

The mention of urine, excluded only on grounds of dignity, reflects empirical pragmatism; urea and ammonia in aged urine are chemically effective solvents.

The idea of a 'smoke-raiser' additive—possibly a resin like Leptadenia pyrotechnica or another plant resin known to alter combustion—suggests knowledge of smoke dynamics.

From a comparative lens, the ketoret resembles Egyptian kyphi, a ritual incense blend described in Greco-Roman sources with similar layering of aromatic and functional ingredients. Both suggest that sacred incense was not just symbolic but engineered: a carefully curated chemical performance meant to stimulate the senses, elevate consciousness, and mark off sacred space.

Outline

Intro

1. Overview

2. Bible Verses (Exodus 30, verses 7, 34-38)

3. Our Baraita

4. Scientific and Comparative Perspectives on the Temple Incense Formula

The Passage - The List of Ingredients in the Temple Incense: The ‘Ketoret’ Formula in Detail (Keritot 6a)

1. Core Ingredients and Quantities

2. Four primary spices each require 70 maneh: balm (צרי), onycha (ציפורן), galbanum (חלבנה), and frankincense (לבונה)

3. Four secondary spices each require 16 maneh: myrrh (מור), cassia (קציעה), spikenard (שיבולת נרד), and saffron (כרכום)

4. Costus; aromatic bark; cinnamon

5. Supporting Substances: Kersannah lye; Cyprus/ aged white wine; Sodomite salt; “smoke-raiser”; Jordan amber

6. Invalid Substitutions (honey) and Omissions

7. Technical Clarifications

   1. “Balm”

   2. “Kersannah lye”

   3. “Cyprus wine”; “Urine”

Appendix - Table summarizing the ingredients and relevant details from the baraita on the Temple Incense formulation

The Passage

Keritot.6a.15-16

Core Ingredients and Quantities

A baraita lists the components of the Temple incense (קטרת - ‘ketoret’).

תנו רבנן:

פיטום הקטרת:

§ The Sages taught in a baraita:

How is the blending of the incense performed?

Four primary spices each require 70 maneh: balm (צרי), onycha (ציפורן), galbanum (חלבנה), and frankincense (לבונה)

Four spices—balm (צרי), onycha (ציפורן), galbanum (חלבנה), and frankincense (לבונה)—each require 70 maneh.¹⁰

1. הצרי,

2. והציפורן,

3. והחלבנה,

4. והלבונה –

משקל שבעים של שבעים מנה.

1. Balm,

2. and onycha,

3. and galbanum,

4. and frankincense --

each of these by a weight of 70 maneh, i.e., 70 units of 100 dinars.

Four secondary spices each require 16 maneh: myrrh (מור), cassia (קציעה), spikenard (שיבולת נרד), and saffron (כרכום)

Four spices—myrrh (מור), cassia (קציעה), spikenard (שיבולת נרד), and saffron (כרכום)—are used at 16 maneh each.

1. מור,

2. וקציעה,

3. שיבולת נרד,

4. וכרכום –

משקל ששה עשר של ששה עשר מנה.

1. Myrrh,

2. and cassia,

3. and spikenard,

4. and saffron --

each of these by a weight of 16 maneh.

Costus; aromatic bark; cinnamon

Costus is measured at 12 maneh, aromatic bark (קילופה) at 3 maneh, and cinnamon at 9.

1. הקושט –

   1. שנים עשר,

2. קילופה –

   1. שלשה,

3. וקנמון –

   1. תשעה.

1. Costus —

   1. 12 maneh;

2. aromatic bark —

   1. 3 maneh

3. and cinnamon —

   1. 9 maneh

Supporting Substances: Kersannah lye; Cyprus/ aged white wine; Sodomite salt; “smoke-raiser”; Jordan amber

In addition to spices, the mixture involves several additives:

1. Kersannah lye: 9 kav

2. Cyprus wine: 3 se'a + 3 kav.¹¹

   1. If unavailable, aged (עתיק) white (חיוריין) wine (חמר) is permitted as a substitute.¹²

3. Sodomite (i.e. Dead Sea; see my previous piece on another Talmudic discussion of this salt) salt: 1/4 kav.

4. “Smoke-raiser”:¹³ a pinch.¹⁴

5. Jordan amber (כיפת הירדן): a pinch (R' Natan).

1. בורית כרשינה –

   1. תשעה קבין,

2. יין קפריסין –

   1. סאין תלתא, קבין תלתא.

   2. אם אין לו יין קפריסין --

      1. מביא חמר חיוריין עתיק.

3. מלח סדומית –

   1. רובע.

4. מעלה עשן –

   1. כל שהוא.

5. רבי נתן אומר: אף כיפת הירדן --

   1. כל שהוא.

1. Kersannah lye —

   1. 9 kav;

2. Cyprus wine —

   1. 3 se’a and 3 kav, a half-se’a.

   2. If one does not have Cyprus wine —

      1. he brings old white wine.

3. Sodomite salt —

   1. 1/4-kav.

4. Lastly, the smoke raiser, a plant that causes the smoke of the incense to rise properly —

   1. a minimal amount

5. R' Natan says: Also Jordan amber —

   1. a minimal amount

Invalid Substitutions (honey) and Omissions

Adding honey renders the incense invalid.¹⁵

Omitting any single ingredient is a capital offense.

ואם נתן בה דבש –

פסלה.

חיסר אחת מכל סממניה –

חייב מיתה.

And if one placed honey in the incense --

he has disqualified it, as it is stated: “For you shall make no leaven, nor any honey, smoke as an offering made by fire unto YHWH” (Leviticus 2:11).

If he omitted any one of its spices --

he is liable to receive death at the hand of Heaven.

Technical Clarifications

“Balm”

R' Shimon clarifies terminology: the "balm" is tree resin.¹⁶

רבי שמעון אומר:

הצרי --

אינו אלא שרף מעצי הקטף.

R' Shimon says:

The balm mentioned here --

is nothing other than a resin exuded from the balsam tree, not the bark of the tree itself.

“Kersannah lye”

The alkali is not part of the incense per se, but used to cleanse (שפין) the onycha for cosmetic improvement.

בורית כרשינה --

ששפין בה את הציפורן

כדי שתהא נאה.

The Kersannah lye mentioned --

is not part of the ingredients of the incense itself, but it is necessary as one rubs the onycha in it

so that the onycha should be pleasant.

“Cyprus wine”; “Urine”

Similarly, Cyprus wine is a soaking agent to intensify the onycha’s fragrance.

Although urine works better for this, it is excluded from the Temple (presumably, on grounds of propriety).

יין קפריסין --

ששורין בו את הציפורן

כדי שתהא עזה.

והלא מי רגלים יפין לה?

אלא שאין מכניסין מי רגלים למקדש.

Likewise, the Cyprus wine --

is required as one soaks the onycha in it

so that it should be strong.

And isn’t urine good for this purpose?

but one does not bring urine into the Temple because it is inappropriate.

Appendix - Table summarizing the ingredients and relevant details from the baraita on the Temple Incense formulation

For identifications of the ingredients mentioned, see the table in Wikipedia, “Incense offering in rabbinic literature”, section “Formulae”:

1. See more info in my note here.

2. Here: “'Is it not all the more so?!': The Kal Va-ḥomer (A Fortiori Argument) as a Literary and Rhetorical Pattern in the Talmud“.

3. This baraita is typically referred to by its incipet (i.e. initial words):

פיטום הקטרת

Pitum HaKetoret

literally: “the blending of the incense“.

The baraita is fairly well known, since it appears in the daily prayer service.

See the entry “Pittum Ha-Ketoret“ at Jewish Virtual Library:

PITTUM HA-KETORET (Heb. פִּטּוּם הַקְּטֹרֶת; "ingredients of the incense"), the initial words of a baraita (Ker. 6a and TJ, Yoma 4:5, 41d) which enumerates the various species of incense offerings in the Temple service every evening and morning (see: Ex. 30: 34–38).

In the Ashkenazi liturgy, this talmudic passage is recited on Sabbaths and festivals at the end of the Musaf prayer immediately after the *Ein ke-Elohenu hymn; in the Sephardi ritual it is recited every morning and afternoon.

The custom of reciting Pittum ha-Ketoret is based on a quotation in the Zohar (to Num. 224a), where it is stated that a person who recites the section of incenses will be spared death (see also: Num. 17:12 and Yoma 44a).

In Provence (southern France), it was customary to recite Pittum ha-Ketoret at the departure of the Sabbath, after the Havdalah service, as a good omen for wealth and prosperity (Abraham ha-Yarḥi, Sefer ha-Manhig, ed. Berlin (1855), Hilkhot Shabbat, 75, 35a).

On the unusual word pitum, see Jastrow (modernized):

פיטום, פט׳

masculine

(פטם)

“compounding, manufacturing; ingredients”

Keritot 6a:

פ׳ הקטרת וכ׳ - the ingredients of frankincense are etc.

Yerushalmi Shekalim 4:48a bottom of page:

שהיו בקיאין בפ׳ וכ׳ - who were experts in the preparation of frankincense.

Yerushalmi Sotah 8:22c top:

פ׳ שמן המשחה - the ingredients of the oil of anointment

a. fr.—[Bava Metzia 4:12 (60a), and elsewhere. , see

פיטוס.]

Plural:

פיטומים, פיטומין, פיט׳

spices.

Terumot 11:2:

כמוני פ׳

Rabbi Samson of Sens (ed.

פטמים

Manuscript Munich:

בשמים)

like those who count spices (and add some in the bargain).—[Midrash Tanḥuma, ed.

Buber, Shof’ṭim:8

פיטומין,

see

פרוטומי.]

Etymologically, this word is likely cognate with the Hebrew word for raising livestock, see Hebrew Wiktionary פטם, senses פִִּטֵּם (“to feed animals large amounts of food”) and פַּטָּם (“raiser of livestock”).

4. I quote the full passage in the next section.

5. On the Avtinas clan and the incense, see my piece “Guardians of Temple Incense: The Eutinas Clan and Their Secret Craft (Yoma 38a)”.

And see Wikipedia ibid., sections “Formulae” and “Synopsis”, for an extensive discussion of the realia of our baraita.

In the appendix to this piece, I provide a screenshot of Wikipedia’s summary table of identifications of the ingredients mentioned.

6. Translation JPS 1985, from Sefaria, with adjustments; for context, see Wikipedia, “Tetzaveh”, section “Seventh reading—Exodus 30:1–10”.

7. For context, see Wikipedia, “Ki Tissa”, section “First reading—Exodus 30:11–31:17”.

8. מנה - a standard Temple weight; see my footnote later.

9. See that sugya in tractate Yoma (38a ; cited in a previous footnote), where Eutinas clan expresses concern that someone might bring the formula to a pagan temple (specifically after the destruction of the Second Temple, which occurred in 70 CE), in my section “Eutinas’ Explanation Why They Didn’t Teach Their Methods“:

אמרו להם חכמים: מה ראיתם שלא ללמד?

אמרו:

יודעין היו של בית אבא

שבית זה עתיד ליחרב,

אמרו:

שמא ילמוד אדם שאינו מהוגן,

וילך ויעבוד עבודה זרה בכך.

The Sages said to them: What did you see that led you not to teach others this craft?

They said:

The members of our father’s house (בית אבא) knew

that this house, the Temple, is destined to be destroyed,

and they were concerned lest an unworthy man learn our skill of preparing incense

and go and engage in idol worship with that skill.

Therefore, they attempted to prevent this skill from spreading beyond their family.

The idiomatic term “[those] of father’s house” (של בית אבא) means the (male) members of the paternal family/clan; meaning, there was a family tradition.

The idiomatic term “father’s house” is especially common in Talmudic literature in quotes from Rabban Gamliel, testifying as to what had historically been done in his aristocratic household.

10. On the word ‘maneh’, see Jastrow (modernized using my script: “Jastrow Dictionary Abbreviation Modernizer”):

מנה

masculine

(Biblical Hebrew, from which μνᾶ, [one hundred,]

Maneh, a weight in gold or silver, equal to one hundred common or fifty sacred shekels (see Zuckermann, 'Talmudische Münzen und Gewichte’ p. 7, and the next page)

Bekhorot 5a:

מ׳ של קודש כפול היה - the sacred Maneh was double the weight of the common.

Ibid. 8:7:

במ׳ צורי - taking the Tyrian Maneh as a standard

Ibid. 49b

מ׳ צורי … מ׳ של צורי - ‘the Tyrian Maneh’ … means the standard of the Tyrian system (one Sela = 4 Zuz, Rashi).

Ketubot 1:2:

בתולה … מאתים ואלמנה מ׳ - the widowhood of a maiden is two hundred (Zuz), and that of a widow (remarried) is one hundred (Zuz, a common Shekel)

Bava Kamma 90b:

מ׳ צורי תנן או מ׳ מדינה תנן - does the Mishnah (Sanhedrin 8:6) mean a Tyrian or a country Maneh (twelve and a half Zuz)?

Shevuot 6:1:

מ׳ לי בידך - you owe me one hundred denars.

Sanhedrin 8:2:

מ׳ בשר - meat of the weight of a Maneh.

Sheviit 1:2:

ששים מ׳ באיטלקי - the weight of sixty Maneh in the Italian system

Keritot 6a

and Frequently

Eruvin 85a bottom of page:

פנו מקום לבן מאה מ׳ - make room for one worth one hundred M. (in gold).

Transferred sense:

מ׳ בן פרס - a Maneh son of a P’ras (half a Maneh), i.e. a distinguished son of a less distinguished father.

Taanit 21b.

Plural:

מנים, מנין.

Yerushalmi Shekalim 6:49c bottom of page:

אלף … מ׳ - the weight of fifteen hundred Maneh

Keritot see above

a. E.

Aramaic form:

מני.

Targum Ezekiel 45:12

(Kimḥi מנא).

Plural: מנין, מניא, מנן, מנאי, מנוי.

Ibid.

Targum Isaiah 7:23.

Targum I Kings 10:17

a. E.

Esther Rabbah to 6:10

Leviticus Rabbah s. 28.—Shabbat 133b

שב מ׳ תרבא (not מינאי, see Rabbinowicz, 'Dikdukei Sofrim' there, note 90) - fat weighing seven Maneh

(Rashi: seven portions of fat).

Yerushalmi Bava Kamma 9:6d bottom of page [read as Tosafoth to Bavli Bava Kamma 100b):

חמש מנוי עמר וח׳ מ׳ סממנין וכ׳ - wool worth five Maneh, dyeing material worth five, and ten Maneh wages.

Yerushalmi Megillah 4:74d bottom of page:

מניי

(correct accordingly)

and elsewhere.

To summarize the key points:

• Maneh is a Biblical Hebrew unit of silver (see מינה (מטבע) – ויקיפדיה ), roughly equivalent to 100 common shekels or 50 sacred ones.

• The sacred maneh (מנה של קודש) is double the weight of the common one (Bekhorot 5a).

• A Tyrian maneh (מנה צורי), often used as a standard, is linked to the Tyrian silver currency system (Bekhorot 49b).

• The maneh frequently appears in monetary legal contexts, such as:

  • Ketubot 1:2 – in reference to ketubah payments (200 for a virgin, 100 for a widow),

  • Shevuot 6:1 – as a claim for a debt (‘You owe me a maneh’),

  • Sanhedrin 8:2 – referring to a weight of meat.

• In some places, the term maneh is used figuratively or to connote prestige, e.g., בן פרס, a 'maneh-son of a half-maneh' in Taanit 21b.

• Aramaic variants of the word include: מני (singular) and various plurals: מנין, מניא, מנן, etc.

• Multiple references from both the Bavli and Yerushalmi illustrate the term's widespread legal, monetary, and metaphorical usage.

11. יין קפריסין ; which serves as a soaking agent, as mentioned later.

12. Unusually, many words in this sentence are in Aramaic: תלתא (twice) and the phrase חמר חיוריין עתיק.

13. מעלה עשן - likely a resinous herb enhancing vertical smoke flow.

14. כל שהוא - literally: “any amount”; a common idiom in Mishnaic/Talmudic Hebrew for “a pinch, a tiny amount, a minimal amount, the smallest amount possible”.

In post-Talmudic, rabbinic Hebrew, often contracted to כלשהו.

15. Presumably, based on the verse (Leviticus 2:11) forbidding honey or leaven in fire offerings.

16. שרף ; as opposed to bark.