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Commentary Index | Return to PrayerRequest.com | DownloadJames Hastings Dictionary of the Bible: Camphire
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CAMPHIRE (kôpher, Son_1:14; Son_4:13) is the henna plant (Lawsonia alba), a small shrub which may still be found at Engedi. It is a great favourite with the people of Palestine to-day, and a ‘cluster’ of the flowers is often put in the hair; the perfume is much admired. It is also extensively used for staining the hands (especially the nails), the feet, and the hair; it stains an ochre-red, but further treatment of the nails with a mixture of lime and ammonia turns the colour almost black. Old women frequently redden their hair, and Moslems their beards, by means of henna.
E. W. G. Masterman.