The composition of the essential oil obtained from epigean parts of Bupleurum fruticosum L., found in Cyrenaica (Libya), was studied by GC and GC/MS. The oil was found to be rich in Î±-pinene (15.3%) and Î²-phellandrene (49.3%). A comparison of the qualitative/quantitative composition of our oil with those of oils of the same origin studied previously highlighted several differences which, although not of a substantial nature, definitively confirmed that bupleurol must not be considered a naturally occurring compound but rather an artificial one.