The Journey of a Drop · the records

The records

213 record pages in ten kinds, in the order of the Journey of a Drop: every field on every page carries its source, and every page leads to its neighbours.

Wherever you enter, the records lead somewhere else: a material to its molecules, a molecule to the words for its smell and the accords that use it, an accord to the fragrances and the history behind it.

  1. Station 1 · Origin

    Places of origin 13

    Where the materials come from: the region, its harvest calendar as a source states it, and what grows there.

    For example BorneoKazanlak, Rose ValleyTamil Nadu

  2. Station 1 · Origin

    Botanicals 13

    The plants behind the naturals, by their Latin names, with the part the trade uses and the places they grow.

    For example Boswellia sacra Flück.Jasminum grandiflorum L.Vanilla planifolia Andrews

  3. Station 2 · Material

    Materials 15

    What goes into the bottle: each material, the plant and part it comes from, how it is obtained and what it contains.

    For example Bergamot essential oilLavandin essential oilVetiver oil

  4. Station 2 · Material

    Regulations 16

    The IFRA Standards and EU rules that restrict, prohibit or label a material or a molecule: educational summaries, not compliance advice.

    For example IFRA Standard: CitralIFRA Standard: Methyl eugenolRegulation (EU) 2023/1545

  5. Station 4 · Molecule

    Molecules 32

    The aroma molecules: identity from PubChem, where each occurs, the words used for its smell and the rules that apply.

    For example Benzyl acetateIso E SuperVanillin

  6. Station 5 · Perception

    Odour descriptors 44

    The words of smell: each word, its family in the published classification, and the molecules and materials that carry it.

    For example BalsamicMilkyWoody

  7. Station 8 · Accord

    Teaching accords 8

    Accords built from the records to teach how a family is put together, in modeled parts: not Radler formulas, not for skin.

    For example An amberThe fougère skeletonA woody-ambery

  8. Station 9 · Perfumer

    Perfumers 13

    Perfumers of the past, with their life dates and the works on record.

    For example Pierre-François-Pascal GuerlainErnest BeauxPaul Vacher

  9. Station 12 · History

    Fragrances 20

    Fragrances of other houses as documented references: house, year and family from the Osmothèque’s list. Nothing here is for sale.

    For example Eau de Cologne ImpérialeShalimarCinnabar

  10. Station 12 · History

    Historical events 39

    Dated moments: houses founded, molecules made, fragrances launched, laws passed and prizes given, each with its source.

    For example Guerlain founded, 1828The launch of Miss Dior: Dior, 1947IFRA’s 51st Amendment

Behind these pages, served as data only: 4 extraction methods, 8 harvest and processing steps, 110 filed sources and 97 entries of the claims register. The house’s own fragrances are not records: the collection is coming soon, and nothing on this site is for sale.

counts made from the records when the site was built · each record as data under /data/

Our text and structure are CC BY 4.0; quoted source text stays under its owners’ terms.