Bouquet de Faunes
Guerlain (1923)

The opening is dominated by orris root, a very nice orris that is brightened up a touch by a neroli that and a slightly earthy undertone. The first floral I get is a lovely and rather dark jasmine, which is trailed by a slightly green-tinged iris impression. The whole is quite unique and intriguing.

The drydown leads into a floral potpourri is considerable complexity. The main notes I get, apart from the iris that is still lingering, I get a geranium, carnation and a touch of violet, that is replaced by a delightful but transient lavender after a while. A light rose flares up briefly. Later on an ylang-ylang comes to the fore and adds a bit more sweetness; it is a slim and elegant version and not one of the rich and creamy ylang-ylangs. Herbal touches cones and go, marjoram - very little on me - and whiffs of sage.

An ambery wood note - rosewood it says but it's a bit dull on me, leads into the base, where a soft leather notes is given more depth by a light notes of vanilla-favorites like tobacco; this latter notes is spun out further by a light tonka persists for longer. A musky background unfolds, maintained by a costus that is made a bit darker by a dyad of castoreum and patchouli. The latter is dark and brooding, but, interestingly, it is quite a smooth patchouli; the darkest one are often the harsher ones in many other cases. A touch of earthiness is provided by sone vetiver towards the end. The iris is the long-term survivor in the longitudinal development of this creation, contribution a powdery undertone for the last couple of hours.

I get moderate sillage, good projection and nine hours of longevity on my skin.

This is a delicious scent for cooler spring days, which excels, particularly for the first three or four hours hours, by the high quality of its ingredients a d the masterful blending. Towards the second half the notes lack a bit in vividness, possible a result of the decades that passed, but the floral richness is still quite convincing, and the original use and blending of the ingredients adds to the pleasure. Overall 4/5.

GUERLAIN – BOUQUET DE FAUNES (1922)

The 1920s saw a number of Parisian perfumes created as a tribute to Claude Debussy and his tone poem, Prelude A L'Apres-Midi D'Un Faune (Prelude To The Afternoon of a Faun). These were deep, dark, animalic chypres, keeping in mind Coty's famous Chypre ingredients (bergamot, oak moss, labdanum) and attempting to replicate this effect with the animalic notes of civet, musk, ambergris and castorium added to the mix. The results were dark, moist, earthy and carnal.

Among these are Molinard's Le Baiser du Faune (Kiss of a Faun) (1929), Blondell's La Faune Des Bois (1928), and the Holy Grail and instigator of the tribute to that mythological creature (half boy, half goat), Guerlain's Bouquet de Faunes (1922), which at this writing is the most expensive vintage scent in the world.

The container for this creation is a masterpiece of Lalique creativity. An urn with three sculptures of heads of fauns surrounding the top, with the urn itself poised atop a pedestal. The empty urns themselves have been selling for thousands of dollars. The scent, created by Jacques Guerlain himself, is nearly impossible to locate.

Top notes: Neroli, Suede (Orris), Jasmine
Heart notes: Iris, Marjoram, Lavender, Amber, Carnation, Rose, Ylang, Geranium, Violet, Rosewood
Base notes: Musk, Costus, Leather, Tonka, Vanilla, Tobacco, Civet, Castoreum, Vetiver, Patchouli

This is a rather indescribable scent, totally unique in my experience. The bottle sniff is one of spicy carnation, but once it is applied to the body, it is quite different. Warm, deep, earthy, yes, but with no sharp or strong effects as one might have expected from the animal notes. It has the effect of a very concentrated powder or a very well cured leather. The musky evidence of costus combines with generous amounts of orris to carry the scent through a long and close to the skin dry down.

Bouquet is a very personal scent, almost an emanation of one's own body oils captured in a bottle. Deeply saturated florals with an almost fur-like concentration of resins and animalics – a totally original creation from a master perfumer.

Even if it were still available it would probably cost a small fortune in today's market. Do, however, mortgage your home if you have to, to experience this. All true lovers of vintage perfume owe it to yourselves.

Well, this review is for aficionados of vintage and impossible to find perfumes. Bouquet de faunes is something extremely weird that smells like fur. It's a fur perfume, with strong and dark animalic notes. There is civet , castoreum and other bases that I don't know but it's not a classic leather.There is also an undergrowth note, that reminds the name of the fragrance. But it is very difficult to describe as it actually smells like nothing else. For me it's a fragrance family by itself. The result is darker than Tabac blond and heavier than Fracas, as you can guess by seeing the colour of the juice! But it's beautiful, it's like if you were digging in the woods under the leafs, the roots and the earth...