Palestine’s Soap-Making City
Nablus is home to some of the highest quality artisanal products in the world. Nabulsi soap is just one example.
The city was a famous center of soap production, becoming a major industry by the 14th century, and by the 19th century the city’s dominant economic sector with over 40 operational factories. But as of 2008, only two of these factories still survive.
1) Via Institute for Palestine Studies 2) Via Educatel
In 1907, Nabulsi soap factories were producing half of the soap in Palestine. Soap brands were often symbols or names of animals: muftahein (the two keys), al-jamal (the camel), al-na‘ama (the ostrich), al-najma (the star), al-baqara (the cow), al-badr (the full moon), and al-asad (the lion). The production of soap is intertwined with the cultivation of olives since olive oil is a key ingredient:
“Virgin olive oil, water and a sodium compound are mixed in a large vat over low heat for approximately five days, before the mixture is poured over a large floor space. Shortly afterward, casts are laid down to cut the soap into individual blocks, which are then stamped with the traditional seal of the factory of production. Once the soap is cut into blocks, it is stacked in geometric towers which allow for air circulation that assists in the drying process. The towering pyramids of soap climb to heights of over eight feet, and line the halls of the factory's drying room for a period of between ten and thirty days, before they can be packaged and shipped.”
Sources: Pal Quest, Institute for Middle East Understanding and Interactive Encyclopaedia of the Palestine Question
