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The Book Impasse des parfums written by Michel Wichegrod
Dense and eventful, "Impasse des parfums, le roman des parfums de Montpellier" is a mine of
information on a little-known aspect of the history of Montpellier, which from the 13th to the 18th
century was the regional, then French, then European capital of perfume.
It's also a journey into the world of perfumery, a multiplication of insights into its evolution, its
treasures, its mysteries, its know-how.
It is also a description of the reasons that led to the undertaking of a modern recreation, in their
secular cradle, of an industry, an art and an art of living of timeless splendor.
Book only available in format digital ebook
A free print13x18 cm :opposition photographe from thé faculty of medicine
Book registered with the SGDL(Société des Gens de Lettres) The 01/25/2019
Free delivery from 160 €
Excerpt from the book
The book is in french
Extract translated page 165 :
"Orange blossom is a classic, and classicism is what comes back after modernism, like fine
weather after rain, or the opposite. There are people for whom the most beautiful thing about the
weather is a shower. Orange blossoms are found in Christian iconography and symbolism, which
have made them an attribute of the Virgin Mary, an emblem of purity, chastity and redemption.
These were to be found at Versailles, where the young orange trees that courtiers brought to the
royal prisoner of the heaviest burden - that is, of absolute monarchy, a paroxysmal concentration
of authority deriving from an idea of the divine or an idea of power, depending on world views or
the brutality of ambitions - joined the expensive collection of orange trees from Portugal, Spain
and Italy, opportunely assembled in the Orangerie by Le Vau and Hardouin-Mansart. Orange
blossom has other effects, other uses, other smells, other interpretations. It's said to be an
aphrodisiac, but what perfume isn't, when it's worn to attract, captivate, capture, panic? It's
everywhere in
In "Les Mille et Une Nuits", which are far from always wise, and in Maupassant, which is far from
always pastoral; its absoluteness is tenebrous and exhilarating; the warmth and power of its
neroli, reserved for women by custom, is now seeping into men's fragrances. What is neroli? It's
an essential oil distilled from the flower of the sour orange tree. What is a sour orange tree? A
variety of orange tree with bitter fruit and fragrant to full-bodied flowers. We don't like the little
natures in perfumery. Why
Why "neroli"? Because Marie-Anne de la Tremoille, promoted to Princess Orsini by her remarriage
to Flavio Orsini, Prince of Nerola, used bitter orange flower essence to perfume her gloves, her
bath and the Spanish court, where she exerted aromatic and political influence, particularly on
Philippe V, grandson of Louis XIV. Perfume is the nerve of diplomacy. Where is Nerola?
In Lazio, an eight-hour ride from Rome, one hour in an Alfa Romeo and respecting the speed
limit. How much does a kilo of neroli cost? Around six thousand euros. How much is a kilo of
orange blossom absolute? Around seven thousand euros. That's about it. All the same, in a
fundamentally inexplicable world and existence, we know the answers - some of which have to be
right - to a handful of questions."
