Agathis alba

A different reason for appropriating a material object comes from the kauri (Agathis alba) and merkus (Pinus merkusii) pine forests of Malaysia. Local people collect soft resin from these trees and sell it as a cash crop. Under the name Malay damar, this exudate is exported as a valued ingredient for high quality varnishes. 

Khan, N. U. Ilyas, M. Rahman, W. Mashima, T. Okigawa, M. Kawano, N., Biflavones from the leaves of Araucaria bidwillii Hooker and Agathis alba Foxworthy (Araucariaceae), Tetrahedron, 1972, 28, 5689-5695. 

Moluccas (70) where Agathis alba resin is used and some potters in Papua New Guinea use a resin coat to seal water pots (11). 

Manila resins [sometimes called copal (5)] have been obtained by tapping the bark of Agathis alba (Araucariaceae) growing in Indonesia, the Philippines, and New Guinea, and have been used in recent times. 

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