[Hakone Glass Forest Museum 2024 Special Exhibition]
The Dressing of Fragrance: The History of Perfume Bottles

Fragrances have changed their role over the years: in ancient times they were used as offerings to the gods, in the Middle Ages and Renaissance as medicines and talismans to protect against illness, and now as fashion. Along with the development of fragrance, perfume bottles were created using a variety of materials, including natural stones, ceramics, and glass. Perfume bottles, like the "costumes" that the fragrance wears, convey the splendor of the past to the present.

This exhibition will display approximately 3000 carefully selected items that trace the path of people and fragrance over more than 80 years. Along with the fragrances loved by three ladies of the era, the exhibition will introduce the world of fragrance vessels, including perfume bottles made from crystal and agate, perfume bottles that express mythology and love, and perfume bottles from the late 3th century onwards that are designed with the image of fragrance. Enjoy the "fragrant attire" that is filled with people's thoughts.

Exhibition contents

Chapter 1: The Lady and the Spread of Fragrance

From the 11th century onwards, precious perfumes were brought to Venice through trade from the Islamic world, and during the Renaissance, perfume, soap and cosmetics became popular. This trend spread to the courts of other Italian cities, and many perfume factories were established in Florence.
It was Caterina de' Medici (1519-1589) of the Medici family who introduced Italian perfume to France. It is said that when she married King Henry II of France, she brought perfume recipes using musk and other ingredients to France. After that, many perfumes were made from fragrant flowers in Grasse, a warm city in the south of France.
Later, perfume culture developed in France under the leadership of Madame de Pompadour (1721-1764) and Marie Antoinette (1755-1793), who led court culture.
Expensive perfumes made from precious natural fragrances were contained in luxurious bottles made from jewellery, delicate Venetian glass, and porcelain, which had just begun to be produced in Europe, and it is said that noblewomen enjoyed blissful moments filled with fragrance.

Chapter 2: The scent of antiquity

The oldest glass vessels, more than 3000 years old, unearthed in ancient Mesopotamia are thought to have been used to store perfumed oils, and we can see that the relationship between humans and fragrances had already begun at that time. In ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt, fragrances were considered sacred, and richly scented resins and fragrant woods were burned, and the scents, along with the smoke, were offered to the gods. Ointments and perfumed oils, which had these scents transferred to oil, were also stored in alabaster or glass containers, and were used by the wealthy to entertain guests. Cleopatra (69-30 BC), the last queen of ancient Egypt, known for her peerless beauty, loved the scent of roses, and is said to have captivated the powerful people of the time with her captivating scent and her talent for fluent in several languages.
Stories about spices and aromatic substances also appear frequently in the Bible. In particular, the New Testament tells the story of three wise men who, upon learning of the birth of Christ, came to worship from the East, guided by a star, each carrying gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Frankincense and myrrh are resinous spices extracted from trees of the Burseraceae family, and were said to be as valuable as gold at the time.

Chapter 3: Fragrance from the East

After the fall of the Western Roman Empire (467), Europe entered a long period of dark ages. Meanwhile, the Islamic world, which inherited the culture and technology of ancient Greece and Rome, rapidly expanded its sphere of influence from Morocco in the west to Central Asia in the east. As a result, various knowledge, including people and things, was concentrated in the region, and techniques for glass manufacturing, alcohol and fragrance distillation were developed. Spices and fragrances produced throughout the region also became widely distributed.
The scents that people in the Islamic world particularly liked were roses and musk. It is said that they would use narrow-mouthed bottles to sprinkle rose-scented water (rose water) on the floor or on guests to entertain them with its fragrant aroma.
This elegant fragrance culture was brought to Venice at the wedding of Byzantine princess Theodora Ducas (1058-1083) and the 31st Doge (admiral), Domenica Servoz. The fragrance culture quickly spread throughout Europe, and many kinds of perfumes and rose water were imported from the East. The seven Crusades also drew people's attention to the East, and knowledge of medicine, pharmacology, and fragrance manufacturing methods spread throughout Europe, leading to the advent of the Renaissance.

Chapter 4: The Fragrance of a New Era

The late 19th century and early 20th century were the beginnings of a new era for perfume. Until then, perfume had been made from natural fragrances, but advances in science and technology led to the creation of synthetic fragrances, which made mass production possible. As a result, perfume was widely released from the world of royalty and aristocracy to civil society.
Perfume manufacturers developed new scents one after another in line with the latest trends and ordered designers to create perfume bottles that matched the image. They worked out brand strategies for labels, boxes, and advertising, and the perfume sector developed into a major industry within the fashion industry.
There was a particularly high demand for glass perfume bottles, which were airtight and could be mass-produced, and highly artistic perfume bottles were produced by companies such as Baccarat, France's leading glass manufacturer, as well as Emile Gallé and the Daum brothers. In addition, jewelry designer René Lalique not only adopted the trends of the time, such as Art Nouveau and Art Deco, but also produced many highly designed perfume bottles, further increasing the value of perfume and its manufacturer brand.