Perfume facts for kids

A perfume advert

Perfume is a liquid that gives people, things and rooms a good smell. It is made of oils which give off scent to the surrounding air. The odoriferous compounds that make up a perfume can be manufactured synthetically or extracted from plant or animal sources.

Perfumes were used in the earliest human civilizations. Modern perfumery began in the late 19th century with the commercial synthesis of aroma compounds such as vanillin or coumarin. The artificial compounds gave a wider ranger of scents than natural materials.

Perfume smells more when temperature is warmer. So people put it on the neck, wrist and back of the knee, because these parts are warmer. Eau de Cologne is a type of perfume which can be splashed on the body. It is not so concentrated as the usual perfumes.

Today, most common essential oils, such as lavender, peppermint, and eucalyptus, are distilled. Raw plant material, the flowers, leaves, wood, bark, roots, seeds, or peel, is put into a distillation apparatus over water. As the water is heated, the steam passes through the plant material collecting the scents. The steam flow through a coil, where it is condensing back to liquid, which is then collected.

Most citrus peel oils are cold pressed, like olive oil production. Citrus-fruit oils are cheaper than most other essential oils. Lemon or sweet orange oils got as by-products of the citrus industry are even cheaper.

Animal sources

Ambergris

Ambergris: lumps of fatty compounds, secreted and expelled by the sperm whale. Because the harvesting of ambergris causes no harm to the whales, collecting it is not controversial.
Castoreum: from the scent glands of the North American beaver.
Civet musk: from the odorous sacs of civets, which are animals in the family Viverridae, related to the mongoose.
Honeycomb: from the honeycomb of the honeybee.
Deer musk: from the musk sacs from the Asian musk deer.

Other natural sources

Lichen. Commonly used lichens include oakmoss and treemoss thalli.
Seaweed. Distillates are sometimes used as essential oil in perfumes. An example of a commonly used seaweed is Fucus vesiculosus, the bladder wrack. Natural seaweed fragrances are rarely used due to their higher cost and lower potency than synthetics.

Synthetic sources

Many modern perfumes contain synthesized odorants. Synthetics can provide fragrances which are not found in nature. For instance, Calone, a compound of synthetic origin, gives a fresh metallic marine scent that is widely used. Synthetic aromatics are often used as an alternate to compounds that are not easily got from natural sources.

History

Egyptian scene depicting the preparation of Lily perfume

Etruscan perfume vase shaped like a female head

The word perfume used today derives from the Latin per fumum, meaning "through smoke." Perfumery, or the art of making perfumes, began in ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt and was further refined by the Romans and Persians.

The world's first recorded chemist is considered to be a woman named Tapputi, a perfume maker who was mentioned in a cuneiform tablet from the 2nd millennium BC in Mesopotamia. She distilled flowers, oil, and calamus with other aromatics then filtered and put them back in the still several times.

In 2005, archaeologists uncovered what are believed to be the world's oldest perfumes in Pyrgos, Cyprus. The perfumes date back more than 4,000 years. The perfumes were discovered in an ancient perfumery. At least 60 stills, mixing bowls, funnels and perfume bottles were found in the 43,000-square-foot (4,000 m²) factory. In ancient times people used herbs and spices, like almond, coriander, myrtle, conifer resin, bergamot, as well as flowers.

The Arabian alchemist, Al-Kindi (Alkindus), wrote in the 9th century a book on perfumes which contained more than a hundred recipes for fragrant oils and medical substances.

The Persian chemist Avicenna introduced the process of extracting oils from flowers by means of distillation, the procedure most commonly used today. He first experimented with the rose. Until his discovery, liquid perfumes were mixtures of oil and crushed herbs or petals, which made a strong scent. Rose water was more delicate, and immediately became popular.

The art of perfumery was known in western Europe since the 13th or 14th centuries. By the 18th century, aromatic plants were grown in France, Sicily, and Italy.

Images for kids

A bottle of perfume by Yves Saint Laurent
Egyptian scene depicting the preparation of lily perfume, 4th century BC
A Byzantine alembic used to distill perfumes
Original Eau de Cologne flacon 1811, from Johann Maria Farina, Farina gegenüber
J.B. Filz in Vienna. Perfumeries with long traditions, such as J.B. Filz, created their own scents.
An original bottle of Fougère Royale by Houbigant. Created by Paul Parquet in 1884, it is one of the most important modern perfumes and inspired the eponymous Fougère class of fragrances.
Opium by YSL, of amber or oriental fragrance class
Fragrance Wheel perfume classification chart, ver. 1983
Citrus tree blossom
Frankincense
A musk pod. Extensive hunting of male musk deer for their pods in recent history has resulted in the detriment of the species.
This chart shows the typical relationship between price of perfume, its longevity and the concentration of essential oils.
Itar (herbal perfume) vendor on the street of Hyderabad, India, who can compose an original perfume for the customer
An old perfume still on display at Fragonard
Indian Patchouli - Tincture
The Perfume Maker, by Rodolphe Ernst
Paper blotters (fr:mouillettes) are commonly used by perfumers to sample and smell perfumes and odorants.
A "perfume organ", where perfumers play around with hundreds of essences, in Grasse
An assorti of counterfeit perfumes (in a "kiosk" store)
Patch test
Perfume stall in Cairo
Ancient Egyptian perfume vase in shape of an amphoriskos; 664–630 BC; glass: 8 × 4 cm (3.1 × 1.5 in); Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York City)
Ancient Greek perfume bottle in shape of an athlete binding a victory ribbon around his head; circa 540s BC; Ancient Agora Museum (Athens)
Late Hellenistic glass gold-band mosaic alabastron (perfume bottle); 1st century BC; glass and gold leaf; Metropolitan Museum of Art
Roman perfume bottle; 1st century AD; glass; 5.2 x 3.8 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art
Partially broken perfume amphora; 2nd century AD; glass; from Ephesus; Ephesus Archaeological Museum (Selçuk, Turkey)
British Rococo perfume vase; circa 1761; soft-paste porcelain; overall: 43.2 × 29.2 × 17.8 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art
British Neoclassical pair of perfume burners; probably circa 1770; derbyshire spar, tortoiseshell, and wood, Carrara marble base, gilded brass mounts, gilded copper liner; 33 × 14.3 × 14.3 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art