History of perfume
[4] The perfume references are part of a larger text called Brihat-Samhita written by Varāhamihira, an Indian astronomer, mathematician, and astrologer living in the city of Ujjain.
[6] Excavations in 2004-2005 under the initiative of an Italian archaeological team unearthed evidence of an enormous factory that existed 4,000 years ago during the Bronze Age.
As traders, Islamic cultures such as the Persians had wider access to a wide array of spices, resins, herbs, precious woods, and animal fragrance materials such as ambergris and musk.
Muhammad said: The taking of a bath on Friday is compulsory for every male Muslim who has attained the age of puberty and (also) the cleaning of his teeth with Miswaak (type of twig used as a toothbrush), and the using of perfume if it is available.
It contained more than a hundred recipes for fragrant oils, salves, aromatic waters and substitutes or imitations of costly drugs.
The book also described one hundred and seven methods and recipes for perfume-making, and even the perfume making equipment, like the alembic, still bears its Arabic name.
[11] The Persian Muslim doctor and chemist Ibn Sina (also known as Avicenna) introduced the process of extracting oils from flowers by means of distillation, the procedure most commonly used today.
For instance, eggs and floral perfumes were brought to Europe in the 11th and 12th centuries from Arabia, by returning crusaders, through trade with the Islamic world.
[12] Catharina de Medici initiated the perfume industry in Europe when she left Italy in the 16th century to marry the French crown prince.
A temple to Athena in Elis, near Olympia, was said to have saffron blended into its wall plaster, allowing the interior to remain fragrant for 500 years.
[13] In May 2018, an ancient perfume "Rodo" (Rose) was recreated for the Greek National Archaeological Museum's anniversary show "Countless Aspects of Beauty", allowing visitors to approach antiquity through their olfaction receptors.
The art of perfumery prospered in Renaissance Italy, and in the 16th century, Italian refinements were taken to France by Catherine de' Medici's personal perfumer, Rene le Florentin.
During the Renaissance period, perfumes were used primarily by royalty and the wealthy to mask body odors resulting from the sanitary practices of the day.
Madame de Pompadour ordered generous supplies of perfume, and King Louis demanded a different fragrance for his apartment every day.
The court of Louis XIV was even named due to the scents which were applied daily not only to the skin but also to clothing, fans and furniture.
By the 18th century, aromatic plants were being grown in the Grasse region of France to provide the growing perfume industry with raw materials.
Ladies of the day took great pride in creating delightful fragrances and they displayed their skill in mixing scents in the still rooms of manor houses.
Florida water, an uncomplicated mixture of eau de cologne with a dash of oil of cloves, cassia and lemongrass, was popular.
