Safranal We happened on a nest of Crocus Sativus, petal, stigma, style, strands of saffron lolling over lilac rims, and slid our hands close to the earth to pluck them, three per bloom. Evocations: * Jeweled rice of Persia * Paella in Andalucia * Amish golden broth * Under the counter, in the old Tunis souk * High up, in Mama’s kitchen cabinet * Curled in Grandpa’s crystal pill box * bittersweet notes reaching back in time * to Minoa, …
Tag: Perfumery
Myrrh: Myth, Resin, Love, and the Everlasting
In Ovid’s Metamorphoses, Orpheus sings of the unfortunate Myrrha, who, overcome by a perverse love for her father, tricked him into having sex with her with the help of her loyal nurse. When her father took a lamp to the face of his nubile mystery lover and found his very own daughter, he snatched his sword and made to kill her. She ran away and wandered from Arabia to Sabaea. After nine months, her burden weighing heavy, she collapsed and …
The Art of Perfumery, Introduction & History I, by G.W. Septimus Piesse, 1857
*This introduction to The Art of Perfumery (1857) comes from the Project Gutenberg edition. We’ve referred to our author, G.W. Septimus Piesse before, quoting with great admiration his forward-looking thoughts on the problematic secrecy of perfumery–a quote that you will read in context here. This introduction to a comprehensive manual and recipe book for Victorian perfumers inspires a love of scent that is at the heart of Aromatica Poetica.* THE ART OF PERFUMERY, AND METHOD OF OBTAINING THE ODORS OF …
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Sandalwood: From the Perils and Intricacies of Forestry to the Rarified world of Perfumery
Sandalwood reminds me of entering homes with objects from faraway lands. My aunt and uncle had such a home, with artifacts collected in world travels scenting the almost sacred space. When I entered the familiar yet exotic realm, my child’s imagination and consciousness expanded to include worlds beyond the tiny one I occupied. As Deniz Ataman, managing editor at Perfumer & Flavorist put it in an email, “At the root of it, perfumery is about sharing the essence of the …
Aroma Victoriana: Flowers, Explosives, and the Mysterious Secrecy of Perfumery
Often we associate the Victorian Era with a degree of primness that falls helplessly into parody–nowhere better illustrated than in Oscar Wilde‘s The Importance of Being Earnest (1895)–but as with all eras, the Victorian offers a dark underbelly as well as a laced-up exterior. I shan’t elaborate on the entirety of this dichotomy, but content myself with the extremities of Victorian perfumery, from the nosegay to the nether regions of the civet, and from the ancient coaxing of flowers by …
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