Coming from the depths of the Egyptian age, Le Dieu Bleu exhales its divine and mysterious perfume, as if extracted from a supernatural universe. Intended for the gods, rising up are heady scents of aromatic herbs, saps, roots, and bark, destined to induce a meditative state, with powers of the beyond…its wonderful lively, intoxicating scents of woody honeyed broom, mystical and heady myrrh, green and fresh lentisk, and fruity opoponax, carry us away to the colorful splendors of the temples and frescoes of...Ancient Egypt. — Astier de Villatte

Le Dieu Bleu (one of Astier de Villatte's Trois Parfums Historiques; see Les Nuits and Artaban) was inspired by kyphi (which I’ve written about before on Now Smell This). Many recipes for this storied scent include: Cyperus longus (with a ginger odor), juniper berries, raisins, wine, honey, resin of the pistachio tree (mastic), Calamus odoratus, broom, rose-scented grass from Egypt, myrrh, henna and mint. To this list, Greeks added cinnamon, nard (spikenard), cardamom, sesame and saffron.

Kyphi, apart from ceremonial and personal use as incense, was ingested as a medicine and made into breath-freshening pastilles. Le Dieu Bleu's perfumer, Dominque Ropion, used ancient texts with lists of kyphi ingredients as references but wanted to recreate the “tone” of ancient kyphi, not attempt the impossible — a replica.

The perfume name, Le Dieu Bleu, probably refers to the intersex Egyptian god Hapi. A god of the Nile, Hapi was in charge of the river’s annual flooding and Hapi's blue body was often painted with “wave patters” on the skin. Hapi's scented 'associates' were papyrus in the south of Egypt and lotus in the north. Another possibility for the blue god is Amun, the sometimes invisible god of air/wind — appropriate for a fragrance!

Le Dieu Bleu starts off smelling like a “wet” potpourri, made with crushed ginger, raisins, mint and juniper berries mixed with wine and honey. If this “mash” appeared before me, I’d certainly sniff, but also be tempted to taste. In mid-development, myrrh and mastic come forward and a delicate “smoke” aroma appears; we’ve gone from wet potpourri to incense. An interesting caramelization of all ingredients takes place in Le Dieu Bleu's base and reminds me of the scent of oak wood — a warm, comforting finish. Le Dieu Bleu has minor projection (only those right next to you will notice it); it lasts on my skin for about three hours before it needs to be reapplied. Le Dieu Bleu is my favorite of the Trois Parfums Historiques.

Comparing Le Dieu Bleu to Les Nuits and Artaban is interesting. Both Les Nuits and Artaban smell “old.” Les Nuits reminds me of vintage fragrances that have lost their “sparkle” but gained heft over the decades due to oxidation and evaporation. Artaban smells more like a medicinal, useful product (kept by doctors, shamans, midwives and good witches) that's used to treat illness or evil spirits. Le Dieu Bleu, to my tastes and skin, is the most wearable (and beautiful) of the three perfumes. 

Final thoughts on the Trois Parfums Historiques collection: Is it sensible, or worthwhile, to attempt recreations of historic fragrances in the age of IFRA? Many ingredients in really old formulas are dangerous (health-wise) or mysterious — with, to contemporary perfumers, unknown processing techniques or meaningless names (what were they?) My impatience, and disinterest, with all such perfume projects has increased greatly in the last decade. After smelling the Trois Parfums Historiques, I don't feel I've been in George Sand's scented presence, worn the perfume of Ancient Romans or experienced kyphi. BUT: if Astier de Villatte makes an announcement like this in the future, all bets are off: Beloved French author Colette tried her hand at skincare, makeup and perfume in the 1930s. Astier de Villatte is pleased to announce the recreation of two of the perfumes made for Colette's Institut de Beauté. Perfumer Quentin Bisch leads the project...." 

Astier de Villatte Le Dieu Bleu Eau de Parfum is available in 30 ml ($167) or 100 ml ($285) spray bottles; a boxed discovery set with all three perfumes (Les Nuits, Artaban and Le Dieu Bleu) in 10 ml includes an interesting informational booklet on the Trois Parfums Historiques project, $210.

As with all three historic perfumes, historian Annick Le Guérer was involved in Le Dieu Bleu's creation. I read her interesting commentary on the perfumes here.

Note: top image is Alabaster eye from coffin. Blue white and black. Date 1550 BC-1069 BC; Egyptian dynastic-Egyptian [color adjusted]; collection of Auckland War Memorial Museum | Tāmaki Paenga Hira, via Wikimedia Commons, some rights reserved.

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