The
word perfume comes from the Latin phrase, "per"
meaning "through" and "fumus" meaning
smoke." The French later gave the name parfum to
the pleasant smells that drift through the air from
burning incense. There are few periods of history that
have not been influenced by perfume. The history of
perfume is often intertwined with the history of the
human race.
The
first form of perfume was incense. Incense was first
discovered by the Mesopotamians about 4,000 years ago.
Ancient cultures burned many kinds of resins, bums and
woods at their religious ceremonies. They often soaked
the fragrant woods and resins in water and oil, and
rubbed their bodies with the liquid. They also embalmed
the dead with these perfumes.
We have learned from hieroglyphics on ancient Egyptian
tombs that perfume played a part in the lives of the
Egyptians. Incense made its way to Egypt around 3000
B.C. and with Queen Hatshepsut, it became very popular.
She led expeditions in search of incense and other valuable
commodities, and the results of which were later recorded
on the walls of a temple created in her honor. In the
temple was a botanical garden filled with incense trees
recovered from these expeditions. Perfumes were found
in the tombs of Egyptian pharaohs. It is probable that
the use of aromatics in mystic rites predated the burning
of incense and sweet herbs in religious ceremonies.
Until the beginning of Egypt's Golden Age, perfumes
were used only in ritual for gods or pharaohs. Perfume
was held in high esteem in Biblical times and there
is frequent mention of fragrance in the Bible. In the
New Testament, the three wise men carried gifts of gold,
frankincense and myrrh to the infant Jesus. Long before,
Moses was commanded by the Lord to "take unto thee
sweet spices, stacte and onycha and galbanum...with
pure frankincense...And thou shalt make it a perfume."
Frankincense is probably still the best known of the
plants alluded to in the Bible. Burning incense was
the privilege of priests in the earliest civilizations.
The custom is still in use today in Catholic and High
Episcopal churches.
Incense,
aromatics, and perfumed oil became available to all
Egyptians as the priests gradually relinquished their
exclusive rights. Citizens were commanded to perfume
themselves at least once a week. The Egyptians, fastidious
in their personal habits, took elaborate baths, which
were the forerunners of the luxurious bathing establishments
of the Greeks and Romans. They soaked their skin in
oils because it gave them pleasure, and helped protect
their bodies from the drying effects of the torrid sun.
Egyptians created many scented creams and emollients.
They would shape them into cones and would melt them
to cover their hair and bodies. Bathing was an enjoyable,
social pleasure, sometimes washing as often as three
times per day.
Egyptians
carried perfume with them from birth until after their
death. Many Egyptians put perfumes in their tombs to
keep their skin silky smooth in the afterlife. Since
the Egyptians believed that the soul ascended into heaven,
relatives saw to it that perfume accompanied the spirit.
Urns encrusted with gold, jars of delicate pottery,
and chalcedonies filled with aromatics were placed in
the tombs. So potent were some of the oils used, that
3,300 years after Tutankhamen's death, a trace of fragrance
in the tightly sealed pots of unguents could be detected
when the tomb was opened. Perfumes were used during
the embalming process and took 40 to 70 days to complete!
Powdered myrrh, cassia and other perfumes were used
in the embalming process.
The
consumption of aromatics probably reached its peak during
this lavish period. Perfume shops were popular meeting
places for almost everyone and the daily bath was an
important activity of the Greek citizen. Different kinds
of unguents were used simultaneously, with certain scents
reserved for particular parts of the body. The Greeks
are attributed with the art of making the first liquid
perfume, although it was quite different from perfume
as we know it today. Their perfumes were fragrant powders
mixed with heavy oils, devoid of alcohol. The liquid
was stored in elongated bottles made of alabaster and
gold, called alabastrums.
Egyptians took pride in the beautiful containers that
held their perfumes. These perfume bottles were also
things of great beauty. The containers were made from
materials such as alabaster, glass, ebony, and porcelain.
Some perfume bottles were made from gold and stone.
When glass first appeared in Egypt around 1558 BC, it
was considered more precious than jewels.
Favorable
climate conditions allowed Egypt to import many spices
and aromatics from India, such as ginger, pepper and
sandalwood. Egypt still holds a prominent place in perfume
essential oil production, responsible for a significant
portion of the world's jasmine production. The ancient
Greeks and Romans learned about perfumes from the Egyptians.
Trade between Crete and Egypt was healthy and symbiotic.
Like the Egyptians, the most highly regarded flower
of Cretans was the lily. The rose was also popular.
Greek culture took a while to develop after that of
the Cretans. Using a variety of fragrance carriers made
from vegetable oils, such as olive oil and almond oil,
they added essential oils made from lilies, roses, anise
and orris root. Despite an earlier ban in the 6th century
prohibiting the use of perfumes, men and women alike
applied them lavishly, before and after baths, during
the day and on all parts of the body.
The Roman public baths were spectacular, and the baths
of the Emperor Caracalla were the most famous. One room,
called the "unctuarium," had shelves with
pots of unguents, jars of fragrant oils, and essences
in bottles of varying size. The Romans indulged in the
practice of applying perfume three times a day. Pet
dogs and horses were also perfumed. At feasts, birds
were released from their cages to dispense perfume from
their wings; draperies, candlesticks, tables, and cushions
were all perfumed. The servants wore musk, marjoram,
spikenard, and other aromatics.
With Alexander the Great's invasion of Egypt in the
3rd century BC, the use of perfume and incense became
even more widespread in Greece. The Greek Theophrastus
of Athens discussed the various carriers of scents,
the essential oils and their plant origins, and even
the effect of various scents on our moods and thinking
processes. He also researched how we perceive scent,
and noted the connection between the perception of odors
and taste.
Perhaps
the most famous ruler of Egypt was Cleopatra. Cleopatra,
well versed in the power of scent, was lavish in her
use of perfume. After the assassination of Julius Caesar,
she left Rome to become the queen of Egypt. There she
greeted Mark Antony, a Roman politician, on a ship with
perfumed sails. Cleopatra's arrival was announced by
clouds of perfume before her barge came into view. Antony
fell under her spell and in fact was so in love with
her, that he killed himself upon hearing a false report
that she was dead. Likewise, on hearing of Anthony's
death, Cleopatra killed herself by provoking an asp
to bite her.
Nefertiti, an Egyptian beauty from an earlier dynasty,
surrounded herself with perfume: containers with myrrh,
flacons filled with sweet oils, and handsomely ornamented
jars of unguents.
The
cedars of Lebanon have been famous throughout the ages.
Cedar was used by King Solomon in the construction of
the temple; oil of cedar was used to coat papyrus manuscripts
to protect them from insects in the time of the Roman
Emperor Augustus, and today cedar is sprayed in wardrobes
to keep moths away.
The
Phoenicians of Syria were the traders or salesman of
antiquity. Aromatic gums brought overland from China
were bought by Europeans who could afford them. Possession
of the sweet-smelling herbs was evidence of wealth.
It was prestigious to wear perfume, and owners of large
amounts of oils and unguents were greatly respected.
Linking
the past and present of the perfume industry are the
Arabs. The process of extracting oils from flowers by
means of distillation, (the procedure most commonly
used today), was developed by Avicenna, the Arabian
doctor unto was also a chemist. He first experimented
with the rose. Until his discovery, liquid perfumes
were mixtures of oil and crushed herbs, or petals which
made a strong blend. Rose water was more delicate, and
immediately became popular.
During
the reign of Catherine de Medici in France perfumes
flourished. Catherine brought her own perfumer, Rene
le Florentin from Italy, with her. His laboratory was
connected with her apartments by a secret passageway,
so that no formulas could be stolen en route.
