a scented palace by elisabeth de feydeau

Using only natural scents according to 18th century perfumery techniques, perfume experts worked tirelessly to recreate the scent of the infamous Queen Marie Antoinette.Īlthough the task was daunting, M.A. Sillage de La Reine extremely challenging and a task only to be undertaken by the foremost French perfumers of the world. The reconstruction of a historical perfume, one of the most fragile cultural artifacts, makes the creation of M.A. The Challenge: How could the perfume in its original form be replicated? A Masterful Creation

In summary, the same perfume made with ingredients today would smell different than the same perfume made back in the days of French court, even if the exact same recipe was followed. So recreating a historical perfume in today’s environment is even more challenging than one might believe! Why? The source of perfume Ingredients today, such as damask roses and other flowers, grow in a different environment where the soil contains a modern composition of chemicals and where the air molecules would contain different traces of toxins. Since historical perfumes discovered later in time would not have been preserved well, the true scent of the queen’s favorite perfume would have smelled completely different, even if composed today using the same ingredients. In comparison to perfumes of today that contain preservatives and even toxic ingredients deemed to be illegal in some countries such as the U.S., perfumes during the reign of the Bourbon family would have smelled differently. When Elisabeth discovered this treasure, she began to imagine what the scent smelled like in the 18th century when the purest of ingredients were combined to create perfumes in this time. Two centuries after Marie Antoinette’s time at court and her death, perfume historian Elisabeth de Feydeau discovered the perfume recipe of “Le Bouquet Aux Mille Fleurs”, or The Thousand Blossom Bouquet, in historical archives. Would this elusive scent transport you to back to the l’Orangie, where spicy orange blossoms and crisp scented apples mingle in tantalizingly aromas, to a time where you meander among the gardens of Versailles in your haute couture silk court dress (Ahhh, sigh). What if…today, you find this secret recipe of Marie Antoinette’s most favorite perfume-an elixir made especially for the Queen by Jean-Louis Fargeon. Gardens of Versailles, France Two hundred years later…

A scented palace by elisabeth de feydeau