The Fragrant Past

by Giuseppe Donato

This volume recounts the attempt by the Italian National Research Council's Service of Archaeological Subsidiary Sciences to reconstruct a number of prefumes or ointments from the period of Cleopatra and Julius Caesar. The rediscovery of ancient perfumes is complicated by the limited evidence that survives; but the authors familiarized themselves with what is known of the original methods of antiquity, and made scientific study of traces of aromatic products from a first-century AD tomb located in Mangalia, by the Black Sea. Their discussion includes an outline of their methods, and discussion of ancient ingredients and their sources from the perfume and spice routes of the Ancient World.

Genres: History

61 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 1995