It's a resin obtained from a tree to which incisions are done so that the sap comes out and solidifies itself. There are plantations in Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia. Benjui, called by Ibn Battuta 'java and Sumatra's incense', became a fashion during the cuattrocento in the Renaissance: In 1461 the Egyptian sultan, Melech Elmaydi, dispatched to the Venetian doge, Pascual Malispiero, a shipment of the precious benjui. In 1476, the Egyptian Sultan Kaitbei, rewarded the beautiful Catarina Cornaro, from Venice, with 15 benjui pounds and shortly after, to not fall out with Florence, did the same with Lorenzo the Magnificent. In Arab countries it is used burning it directly over coal on an incense container, the same way as frankincense in churches. Benjui has the distinctive feature of maintaining the vigor and strength of the other aromas and of harmonizing the mixtures. Its fragrance lasts a long time in the room where it has been burnt.
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