Syrian Arab News Agency S A N A
Aleppo, SANA- The fragrance of Aleppo soap, or laurel soap, is redolent through neighborhoods of the ancient city, where the laurel soap industry was settled in throughout history and was distinguished from other cities by this handicraft that Aleppo people excelled at and engraved their seals on the soap bars to bear the identity of its makers who inherited this profession through ancestors.
In Bab Al-Nasr and across an old street covered with stone arches, the noise and voices of workers are heard in an ancient house that was prepared to be a soap-making facility, which is Zanabili soap factory, where the process of preparing and pouring laurel soap, cutting and drying it to be ready for distribution after months, and to be a passport to introduce this ancient industry to the world.
Safwan Zanabili, the owner of the facility, inherited the profession from his father and grandfathers, mastered it and continued production for many years to be forcibly stopped during the war period, as his facility was damaged by terrorism, to return, after the liberation of the area by the Syrian Arab Army, to his factory after its restoration to start the production circle once again.
Zanabili told SANA that the manufacture of laurel soap is based on a group of raw materials, which are sodium water, terminal oil produced from olive oil, and natural laurel oil.
Aleppo soap, also known as laurel soap, Syrian soap, or ghar soap in Arabic is a handmade, hard bar soap associated with the city of Aleppo, Syria.
Aleppo soap is classified as a Castile soap as it is a hard soap made from olive oil and lye, from which it is distinguished by the inclusion of laurel oil.
Nisreen Othman/ Mazen Eyon
