Vetivert is a personal favorite of Jolique's. Possessing a fresh, green scent, vetivert grows mainly in southern India, but has been found in areas as high as the Himalayan uplands. It is now also cultivated in Java and other areas of Southeast Asia. The roots of the plant, which are very fine, are the source of the fragrance. In India they are woven to make khuschiks—screens—that when dampened with water, scent and cool the air on verandahs and inside temples. This pungent, cool scent has also been used in ladies' fans.

Lavender is another of Jolique's favorites: a mere whiff brings back fond memories of summers in Provence. It comes from the Latin word, lavare, meaning to wash. Romans used it to scent their baths, and its a clean, aromatic scent made it a popular for washing clothing. Even today, one can find bottles of lingerie detergent scented with lavender. Both France and England are major lavender producers, though only France exports its oil. SICALAV is one of France's largest lavender distillers and each year sets aside roughly 50 tons of flowers for use in sachets and potpourris.

Above: A common lavender variety (5).
Above: Rosa centifolia (6).

We can't talk about florals and not mention the rose. The rose was the first flower to be distilled and it has enjoyed a prominent place in perfume history ever since. It was known first in Arabia, where it played an important role in Islamic civilization. In Persia, guests were sprinkled with rose attar when they left a friend's home. The Turks then introduced the rose to what is now modern Bulgaria, the site of the world's largest rose plantations. Bulgaria is home to today's Rosa damascena. (The "damask rose" actually originated in what is now Damascus.) Today, Morocco is the largest source of the Rosa centifolia, used to create rose de mai, a rose absolu that gives richness and tenacity to perfume compositions. Rosa centifolia and Rosa damascena are two of the most widely-used roses in perfume.

No flower has ever inspired more poetry than the rose. From Solomon to Shakespeare, the rose has often been associated with love and passion. But clearly its scent is not for everyone. In the words of Dorothy Parker, fortune, rather than love, smelled much sweeter:

Why is it no one ever sent me yet
One perfect limousine, do you suppose?
Ah no, it's always just my luck to get
One perfect rose. (Dorothy Parker, Enough Rope)

Riches may be sweet, but roses suffice for Jolique.

Bibliography:

-Davis, Theresa, with Leigh, Wendy, Fragrance Sense, Fawcett Columbine, New York, 1985.
-Morris, Edwin, Fragrance: The Story of Perfume from Cleopatra to Chanel, Charles Scribner's Sons, New York, 1984.
-Newman, Cathy, Perfume: The Art and Science of Scent, National Geographic Society, Washington, D.C. 1998.
-O'Donnell, Paul; Stevenson, Seth; Kwon, Beth; Stefanakos, Scanlan, Victoria; "That Animal Attraction," Newsweek, 07/05/99, Vol. 134 Issue 1, p.8.
-Vroon, Piet, with Anton van Amerongen and Hans de Vries, Smell: The Secret Seducer, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, New York, 1994.
"On the Scent of the Musk Deer," UNESCO Courier, November 1994, Vol. 47 Issue 11, p.42.

Photo Credits:

(1), (2), (5), (6): Snively, John. H. A Treatise on the Manufacture of Perfumes, The Druggists Circular, New York, 1890.
(3), (4): Poucher, William, Perfumes and Cosmetics, with Especial Reference to Synthetics, D. Van Nostrand Company, New York, 1923.