History of Perfume (Part 2): From the Sun King to the Industrial Revolution

The 17th century is a period during which perfume occupies a major place. The famous work of art, the engraving called The Perfumer’s Habit, attributed to Gerrit Valck and printed in 1697 by Nicolas de Larmessin, testifies to the preponderance of perfumery under Louis XIV.

The 17th Century: Apogee of Glove Perfumers

The union of leather and perfume

At that time, perfumes and the work of hides were closely linked. Although the fashion for scented leathers was introduced during the Renaissance, its success continued into the 17th century. All leather objects, such as gloves, belts, or shoes were endowed with delicious scents.

Wigs and handkerchiefs were also scented, coated with scented grease. The royal authorization to be named both master glove maker and perfumer was granted as early as January 1614.

Catherine de’ Medici, in the 16th century, had launched the fashion for perfume in Paris, and contributed to the rise of the city of Grasse which became the “world capital of perfume”. At the end of the 17th century, the surface area of jasmine cultivated around the city of Grasse is estimated at around fifteen hectares.

The distillation process improved. Grasse specialized in the production of scented gloves. In this region, plant cultivation flourished. The city forged commercial links with Genoa and Spain. With the invention of the printing press, numerous works delivered recipes for floral waters and other room perfumes, dry perfumes for pomanders and belts.

While jasmine and tuberose were particularly prized, floral scents were far from being the only ones used at the time, and other materials such as musk, patchouli, vetiver, and sandalwood delighted perfumers and the French court. The importation of exotic materials was greatly facilitated, at the time, by the creation of the East India Company.

Perfume at the Royal Court: Masking odors

Works of the time describe Versailles as a dirty and foul-smelling place (seen from today’s perspective). Perfume was used there notably to conceal the putrid odors blowing in the atmosphere, and those of the body.

Toilette was, in fact, far from our current ritual. Moreover, even the toilette of Louis XIV described by the Duke of Saint-Simon in one of his works, highlights the absence of water. The washing of the Sun King consisted rather of rinsing his hands with spirits of wine.

Indeed, since the great Black Death of 1348, doctors suspected water of weakening the organism by opening the pores of the epidermis, making it more conducive to the absorption of microbes.

This fear of water only increased and reached its peak in the 17th century. Thus, aromatic products served to camouflage bad smells and were supposed to clean the inside of the body by protecting it from bad air.

The 18th Century: The Return of Hygiene and Subtlety

The 18th century marks the return of moderation and hygiene. People became cleaner and less tolerant of heady perfumes. Scents became more subtle. Mores within the Court evolved, as did the notion of hygiene, and the practice of bathing redeveloped.

Moreover, spaces intended for the washing ritual and natural needs began to appear in homes, under the name of toilet cabinet and bathroom, hitherto totally unknown.

The need to mask body odors tended to become less necessary. The fashion was for rustic and natural scents and fragrant preparations proved to be more fanciful and sophisticated. The Court of Louis XV was even described as the “perfumed court”. Famous figures such as Marie-Antoinette in turn contributed greatly to the rise of perfumery.

Eaux de Cologne as well as perfumes from Germany met with flourishing success. Among the best known, certain floral bouquets stood out as essentials such as Eau Divine, L’Eau de Mille Fleurs, L’Eau Bouquet du Printemps, or Eau Admirable. Similarly, peel fruits also began to be distilled…

Technical advances and the birth of Eau de Cologne

Although glove perfumers enjoyed a certain prosperity, they suffered from the crisis in the leather trade. Thus, the profession of glove maker was gradually abandoned in favor of perfumery in its own right.

Grasse perfumers became particularly renowned and their know-how continued to evolve. Thus, they gradually learned to work with citrus peels hitherto unexplored such as that of bergamot.

Similarly, it was in the 18th century that the enfleurage method appeared. Jean-Marie Farina, for his part, stood out as a master in the field and began to exploit Eaux de Cologne based on alcohol and citrus fruits.

What’s more, many saw therapeutic virtues in this product, including doctors from the Cologne Faculty of Medicine. The success of this product then began to spread throughout Europe.

Similarly, artificial soda was discovered in 1791 and allowed the creation of soap. This was a real revolution in the world of cosmetics. As early as 1880, the famous Eugène Rimmel considered soap making to be one of the most important branches of the beauty field.

The 19th Century: The Revolution of Modern Perfumery

The first half of the 19th century was characterized by “dry” perfumery. In other words, scented powders were sold in packets and integrated into clothes and wigs. Nevertheless, the growth of Eau de Cologne broke this trend and sparked interest in liquid perfumes.

The era was marked by new research in organic chemistry, leading to the discovery and development of synthetic products for perfumery.

Scientists began to isolate olfactory molecules to invent fragrant products with no natural equivalent. International trade developed, allowing perfumers to source raw materials from abroad. This allowed them to create many original compositions.

The Imperial Passion: Napoleon and Empress Eugénie

In the Bonaparte family, perfume was a passion shared by emperors and their wives. From Napoleon to Empress Eugénie, the immoderate use of personal scents was a distinctive trait of the imperial profile.

Forty liters: This is the average quantity of cologne used each month by Napoleon. Moreover, he drank Eau de Cologne before each battle, reputed for its therapeutic virtues, relatively illusory.

In 1853, Pierre-François-Pascal Guerlain, the famous French perfumer, composed an Eau de Cologne Impériale for Empress Eugénie. The bottle even bore the Emperor’s emblem: the bee. For this work, he received the title of official perfumer to Her Majesty. He would also create other perfumes for foreign imperial courts.

The Great Historic Houses

At the end of this century, great names established themselves:

• HOUBIGANT (1775)
• LUBIN (1798)
• ROGER & GALLET (1806)
• L.T. PIVER (1813)
• GUERLAIN (1828)
• PINAUD (1830)
• BOURJOIS (1863)
• COTY (1904)