Marseille Olive Soap - 250g

250 gram bar

Marseille soap descends from the ancient soap-making techniques of Palestine and the broader Arab world, after Nablus soap was taxed during the Crusades and the taxes were used to create a European soap industry based on the cauldron-cooked and olive-oil-based process. Because of a government edict in 1688, soap makers in Marseille have been obligated to continue using the same open-cauldren hot-cooked process discovered in the Arab world.

Fer à Cheval, founded in 1856, is the finest contemporary example of this pan-Mediterranean soap making tradition. Since France's imperial era, when it conquered tropical countries, most Marseille olive soaps began to include 28% coconut oil. Fer à Cheval recently became the first manufacturer to decolonize their soap by removing any coconut (copra) oil and making it purely of olive oil --- allowing them to get back to how Marseille soap used to be, as well as increase the soap's sustainability and regional economic benefit for Provence.

Marseille soaps are green and have an earthy scent because they are made of olive pomace, a kind of molasses-consistency oil made from crushing the olive seeds and skins left over from the pressing of edible olive oil.

Like Nablus soap, Marseille soap is excellent for the skin and dense and long-lasting. It has a scent something like a grassy field after it rains.