Article about Perfume from National Geographic

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http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/03/070329-oldest-perfumes.html

Oldest Perfumes Found on " Aphrodite's Island "

Roach

for National Geographic News

March 29, 2007

The world's oldest known perfumes have been found on the island reputed to be

the birthplace of Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love, lust, and beauty,

Italian archaeologists announced last week.

Discovered on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus in 2003, the perfumes date back

more than 4,000 years, said excavation leader ria Belgiorno of the

National Research Council in Rome.

Remnants of the perfumes were found inside an ancient 3,230-square-foot

(300-square-meter) factory that was part of a larger industrial complex at

Pyrgos.

The buildings were destroyed during an earthquake in 1850 B.C., but perfume

bottles, mixing jugs, and stills were preserved under the collapsed walls.

The artifacts are currently on display at the Capitolini Museum in Rome, along

with modern reproductions of the centuries-old scents.

Dwight Loren is a perfumer and fragrance consultant with Essential Creations in

New Jersey and a member of the American Society of Perfumers.

He said Grasse, France, is considered to be the center of modern perfume making,

but the industry is known to have ancient roots.

" How sophisticated it was we don't know, but certainly people were looking at

natural ingredients to enhance either their own body or their environments or to

use them in medicine, " he said.

Scents Re-created

Belgiorno's team analyzed the remains of the mixing jugs and identified 14

fragrances native to the Mediterranean region used in perfume production.

Extracts of anise, pine, coriander, bergamot, almond, and parsley are among the

ingredients the ancient perfume-makers preferred.

The team also discovered four " recipes " concocted with the different fragrances.

An experimental archaeology center in Blera, Italy, recreated these perfumes

using techniques described by Pliny the Elder, a Roman author who died observing

the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in A.D. 79.

Plants and herbs were ground up and mixed with olive oil in clay jugs, then

distilled in a clay apparatus, Belgiorno explained.

The smell of the perfumes is " a nice experience that re-creates in our mind a

sort of ancestral reminder, " she said in an email interview.

Parsley, she noted, " is a terrible fragrance if used alone, [but it] forms a

nice scent if blended with other fragrances. "

The re-creations are not yet for sale to the general public, but the excavation

team is looking for a partner to market them. Proceeds would fund further

archaeological work.

Loren, the perfume industry consultant, said such a venture could prove viable

if marketed to the appropriate niche, such as museum visitors, and packaged in a

similar way to the ancient concoctions.

Aphrodite Connection

Aphrodite was likely recognized as the goddess of Cyprus because the island was

already well known for its perfumes by the time the myth arose, according to

Belgiorno.

Many perfumes today are considered aphrodisiacs†" substances believed to boost

sexual desire (related: " Do Aphrodisiacs Really Work? " [February 14, 2006]).

" The Cyprus perfumes were born before Aphrodite, and after Aphrodite they

remained linked to the island and its goddess, " Belgiorno said.

The archaeologist added that she doesn't know why the people of Cyprus started

making and wearing perfumes 4,000 years ago.

In ancient Egypt, she noted, perfumes were used for cosmetic and pharmaceutical

purposes as well as religious ceremonies.

Regardless of how the Cypriot perfumes were used, she believes today's

fragrances just don't compare.

" We have lost the real world of natural fragrances, " she said, " because most of

the perfumes of today are chemical reproductions of the natural fragrances and

scents. "

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