A Turkish association dedicated to the perfumes and scents of antiquity claims to have created a replica of Telinum, a perfume used by the Roman general Julius Caesar himself, and plans to put it on sale in several countries starting next October.
According to Turkish media reports, the replica of this perfume was created after great efforts by the Scent Culture and Tourism Association (Koku Kültürü ve Turizmi Derneği) with the help of archaeologist Cenker Atila of the Republican University of Sivas, the renowned perfume expert and designer Bihter Türkan Ergül, and also with the collaboration of several perfumers from Milan (Italy).
The Turkish association reported that Telinum contains ancient scents – from rock rose to amber – explaining that Julius Caesar travelled throughout Europe, Anatolia, Greece, Egypt and the Aegean during his years as a Roman general, at a time – the 1st century BC – when perfumes and cosmetics were very popular – and expensive – throughout the Mediterranean world.
“Especially rulers, generals, priests and the wealthiest imported different types of perfumes so that they could smell differently from others, or asked perfumers of the time to prepare special perfumes for them,” the association said in a statement.
“The Romans had a great interest in Caesar’s perfume”
“Caesar was a very famous general and dictator, and he always attracted the public’s attention with his lifestyle and way of dressing. People were also very interested in the perfumes he used: how Caesar smelled, what his perfume was, where he got it or who made it, were always questions that aroused great curiosity. Information from ancient writers and the works of his closest friends has made it possible today to establish to a large extent what ingredients his perfumes contained,” the text explained.
“This perfume, signed by the perfume designer Ergül, is made up of the essences (of the original perfume used by Julius Caesar) established on the basis of archaeological and historical data,” said the association, which explains that the essences contained in Telinum include some that were widely used – and difficult to find in antiquity – such as mint, rose, lemon, bergamot, lavender, jasmine, water lily, violet, oud cedarwood, patchouli or amber. The new perfume, which experts estimate that at today’s prices it cost around 200,000 liras (more than 5,500 euros) during the Roman Empire, will go on sale simultaneously in Turkey, France and Italy in October.
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Edited and reviewed by:
Pablo Gómez is a specialist in Turkey and has been editor-in-chief of Hispanatolia since 2011. He has been analysing current affairs and geopolitics in Turkey and the surrounding region since 2006.
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