April 26, 1999
Web posted at: 10:54 p.m. EDT (0254 GMT)

MANISA, Turkey (CNN) -- Hoping a centuries-old secret recipe will inject new romance into their lives, more than 14,000 people flocked to the western Turkish town of Manisa this week to grab a piece of a legendary aphrodisiac.

Local authorities planned to throw hundreds of kilograms of a mysterious paste, known as Mesur Macunu, from the top of the Sultan mosque in Manisa's main square.

The paste, made up of 41 different spices, has gained the reputation of being the strongest aphrodisiac in the country, due to its energizing qualities.

It was said to have been invented in 1540 by a prominent medicine man of the Ottoman Empire, Musluhittin Ephendi, who devised the formula to save the life of the terminally ill mother of Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent.

The recipe has been secretly transferred from generation to generation among the town's ruling class, known only to the top municipal authorities and officially appointed makers.

Every year since Mesur Macunu's creation, the town of Manisa has thrown a special festival to distribute the elixir to the masses.

This year's celebration, the 459th festival, was marked by the announcement that the formula has been officially approved by the Turkish Pharmaceutical Standards Institute.

Manisa authorities said almost 40 tons of the paste would be produced this year, with a quarter of it exported to European countries.

Reuters contributed to this report.