Name: Essence and Alchemy
ISBN: 9781586857028

Mandy Aftel

Renowned perfumer Mandy Aftel explores the primal nature and fundamental importance of aroma in everyday life, teaching people about the nature of smell and the idea of "olfactory consciousness" in Essence and Alchemy: A Natural History of Perfume.

A Natural History of Perfume

Essence and Alchemy

Rjyan C Kidwell

This is a very magical book. If you ever read "Against Nature" and felt real strange during the perfumes part, definitely read this.

As long as there has been passion, there has been perfume. Wealthy Romans used to scent their doves while in Shakespeare's time, a woman in love would place a peeled apple into her armpit to saturate it with her scent and then present it to her lover. Essence And Alchemy resurrects the social and metaphysical legacy that is entwined with the evolution of perfumery, from the dramas of the spice trade to the quests of the alchemists. Aftel tracks scent through the boudoir and the bath and into the sanctums of worship, and along the way teaches us the art of perfume-making, including many of her own recipes, offering insights on the relationship of scent to solitude, sex, and soul.

A Book of Perfume

Andy Bosselman

Kate Lillie

'Probably the ultimate Christmas present for the modern aesthete - a treasure-trove of tales about the magic of scent' Evening Standard

Essence and Alchemy A Natural History of Perfume

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