Papier d'Armenie and Other Fragrant Traditions

by: Juliett Ptoyan

There are many rumors related to papier d’Armenie. They call it the most ancient natural fragrance (obviously, forgetting about the frankincense which are thousands of years older), associate it with the Armenian cultural heritage and tell fancy stories about how this custom was brought by the Bolsheviks from Russian nobility. Rumors are one thing and the other is that if we examine history, everything is way more matter-of-fact: after the middle of the 16th century and the war which lasted for 40 years, the western part of Armenia was merged with the Ottoman Empire. At the time the people of Armenia began to burn styrax tar in their houses—it sterilized the air and filled the room with some sweet scent.

300 years later, a Frenchman, Auguste Ponsot, visited those places. He kept in mind the scent of benzoin from one of his friends’ houses and on returning to France he decided to adjust the manufacturing of the aromatic smoking paper with his friend, Henri Rivière. For this purpose the partners diluted some tar in rectified spirit, drenched some pieces of blotting paper with that mixture and then scissored out of this paper some small squares, which emitted an odor while being burnt or heated.

The first copies were released in 1885 and in 1888-89 papier d’Armenie won medals at several trade shows for the hygiene sector. Later, its scent filled the bohemian Paris salons. By the way, the factory still works nowadays and is managed by Mireille Schwarz, Ponsot’s granddaughter. Apart from this factory, Italian Officinia Profumo Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella produces a similar product under the name of "Carta d’Armenia." It’s interesting to note that the Armenians have never heard of this product or have heard precious little and only in the western part of the country.





Besides, papier d’Armenie's scent was replicated by the alchemists from Mad et Len in №VII Petits Papiers Nobile and Francis Kurkdjian in cooperation with the Ponsot factory produced a limited edition of scented candles in honor of the year of Armenia in France (2006). The scent of those candles somehow differs from the original.

There is another interesting fragrant tradition related to Turkey: here they offer some eau de cologne with coffee and sweets to the guests—not for perfumery purposes but for antiseptic ones: such eaux are usually used for wiping the hands before a meal and after it. These light aromatic waters are called kolonya in Turkish and you can find them in any supermarket, just like disinfectant sprays and gels in Europe. Sometimes you can also find similar products in local Oriflame catalogues.

As a rule, these are usually quite simple fragrances at the heart of which there are citrus notes but you can find more complex variations on the theme. For example, inCologne Parfumée by Nishane there are four such fragrances, at least one of which—Méditerranée—is worth being introduced to for certain, no matter if you are from Turkey or any other country.

By the way, the usage of eau de cologne here is a relatively young tradition. Light aromatic waters came to Ottoman Empire only by the end of the 19th century, at the hollow of the regiment of Abdul Hamid II and eventually turned into a particular replacement for rose water, which was in widespread use at the time and had been for 10 centuries already (and is still being used nowadays for cosmetic purposes).

Morocco



So, here’s Africa: in Moroccan houses they put big bowls in the rooms, fill them with water and put on its surface some jasmine twigs or rose petals. They also offer there the same rose water to wash the hands. There’s a regional tradition in Nubia related to bathing with dough which they massage into the skin and then roll down. They also embalm the body with a potion made of oil and herbs. Another national specific in Sudan: fuming with the smoldering aromatic wood. They say that the women who  carry out this procedure regularly are popular with the local men.

There are no such bright traditions in the post-Soviet area. Yes, people are using fragrances and mists for hair, perfumed hand creams, some aromatic sachets in their wardrobes and some scented salts in bathrooms, but we actually don’t have anything particularly authentic. The exception is a common practice widespread in Russian, Ukrainian and Belorussian villages—in these areas they put a small bundles of twigs and dried field flowers under the bed or on the stove.

Carelia, bath house

In the Yucatan, the given fragrance means that the person wants to finish a romantic relationship. In Thailand, there are widespread sacrariums with circlets of flowers. In India, they put dried patchouli leaves, which are moth repellent, in between the clothes in the wardrobe. The Ethiopian tea ceremony begins by sifting the floor with lemongrass. Meeting some interesting scents in a most unlikely place is one of the most pleasant things, and the world is full with such meetings more than meets the nose.

Do you have your own spicy traditions? Maybe you’ve brought them home from a trip or you saw something unusual during your journey? Tell us, we’re interested to know!