The vessels used for transportation of the precious rose oil are called concums. The name comes from the sound made when pouring the oil from the concum. Safe transportation of the costly rose oil required good packaging. The concum has been specifically developed for storage and transportation of the Rose oil. It has been in use for centuries in its current form. It is a tinned cooper vessel, hand made and pressure tested to prevent leaks.
The concum serves several purposes:
For one: it allows safe delivery of the rose oil.
Two: it prevents adulteration.
Three: allows uniformity of quantity and quality. |
The Concum pictured on this page is one certified by the State Laboratory Bulgarian Rose. - The Laboratory is an agency of the Bulgarian Government charged with the authority to certify the genuine rose oil.
- The Laboratory accepts the rose oil from various distillers and confirms that it complies with the minimum indicators set with the Bulgarian State Standard.
- Then all the rose oil is mixed together in a uniform bulk mass.
- The standard sets lower and higher limits of various indicators. Rose oil with indicators that are below the standard is not accepted, but returned to the distillery.
- When a distillery makes a sale an order is placed with the Laboratory. As a matter of procedure the Rose oil is retrieved from cold storage and left at room temperature for six hours. A commission of three people measures the oil, fills up the concum and certifies it.
- RRose oil is available directly from the distilleries, but in the majority of cases the certified oils is sought after.
- Concums are available in sizes of 50, 100, 250 grams and 1, 5 and 15 kilograms.
| In order for the rose oil to be demonstrated without compromising the larger vessel a 1 gram sample containing identical oil is attached to the neck of the concum. |
|  | | Top view of the concum illustrating the wax seal on the neck of the concum and the manner the Bulgarian Rose State Laboratory certificate is attached. |
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| | Label affixed by the State Laboratory Bulgarska Rosa in celebration of the 330 old history of the Bulgarian Rose Oil. |
|  | | The Certificate attached to the neck of the concum is sealed inside. |
|  | | A seal is applied to the top of the concum. |
|  | | The neck of the concum is secured for access with rope that is sealed at the top and goes through the attached certificate. |
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