Do you ever wonder how man started applying perfumes? How did they discover the effect of perfumes on another individual? What ingredients did they use in ancient times? What other uses did they have of perfumes, aside from beautifying and attracting a potential mate?

The ancient Egyptians are said to be the first civilization to use perfumes. In those days, perfumes were used for religious rituals such as embalming their dead or burning incense in their places of worship. Incense was considered very valuable in those times, as described in the story of the three magi who presented the infant Jesus with gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Myrrh and frankincense are both ancient fragances. 

The Greeks embraced perfume when Alexander the Great moved to nearby Egypt after he conquered Darius the great of Persia. The Greeks were the first to categorize perfumes depending on the part of the plant from which they were extracted. The Roman, meanwhile, used fragrance in celebrating the feast of their goddess Flora. They were also the first to use perfume oils during massages after indulging in Roman baths. 

The rise of modern scents began with the invention of French perfumes. Francois Coty, who was born in Napoleon France in 1873, was the inventor of perfumes as we know them today. He started out as a salesman of ostrich feathers that French fashion houses used to decorate their shops. He was watching a chemist friend infuse scents into toilet waters one day when he realized that he could sell these pleasant scents in specially designed bottles. He spent the next two years in Grasse where he learned how to grow flowers and extract their scents. He later started a small perfume shop in the Rue de la Boetie in Paris with a little help from his grandfather. Coty’s perfumes were packaged in French crystal bottles made by the famous Jacques Lalique. His first rose perfume was a big hit, and he was able to sell about five hundred bottles just a few days after he opened his shop.