Series 3: Incense - Avignon 2002

Series 3: Incense - Avignon by Comme des Garçons
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8.0 / 10 463 Ratings
A popular perfume by Comme des Garçons for women and men, released in 2002. The scent is smoky-resinous. It is being marketed by Puig.
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Main accords

Smoky
Resinous
Woody
Spicy
Earthy

Fragrance Notes

FrankincenseFrankincense Brazilian rosewoodBrazilian rosewood CistusCistus Elemi resinElemi resin Roman chamomileRoman chamomile PatchouliPatchouli VanillaVanilla

Perfumer

Ratings
Scent
8.0463 Ratings
Longevity
7.3351 Ratings
Sillage
6.6338 Ratings
Bottle
6.4302 Ratings
Value for money
7.394 Ratings
Submitted by Sani, last update on 11/19/2024.

Smells similar

What the fragrance is similar to
Cardinal by Heeley
Cardinal
Full Incense by Montale
Full Incense
Ex Voto by WienerBlut
Ex Voto
Mortel by Trudon
Mortel
Incenso d'Oriente (Fragranza Concentrata) by Spezierie Palazzo Vecchio / I Profumi di Firenze
Incenso d'Oriente Fragranza Concentrata
Velvet Incenso by Dolce & Gabbana
Velvet Incenso

Reviews

16 in-depth fragrance descriptions
5
Bottle
5
Sillage
7.5
Longevity
3
Scent
Flavorite

240 Reviews
Flavorite
Flavorite
Very helpful Review 8  
Something Wicked this Way Comes
I must go against the grain, here, on this one and say that Avignon conjures the smell of a freshly opened Pharaoh's Crypt or Temple of doom...someplace old and evil smelling that has not been disturbed until some fool-hearty protagonist in rustic leather chaps swings in and desecrates the Mummy's tomb. This is a very ancient and musty incense to my nose, not at all a sensual experience that I was expecting. Admittedly, I don't have any scent memory or fond childhood association with catholic church mass incense balls. This is has a very dominant myrrh, dusty dead things, creepy crawlies, frankincense and rosewood combination that is very medicinal, linear and disappointing. I am indeed shocked that it gets such high marks, I must now investigate the rest of the CdG Incense series for a more exotic temple type incense, perhaps Kyoto or Hinoki from the Monocle series is the one for me? Avignon just makes the hairs on the back of my neck come up and I think of the expression "Something Wicked this Way Comes."
3 Comments
10
Bottle
7.5
Sillage
5
Longevity
9
Scent
Tar

261 Reviews
Tar
Tar
Very helpful Review 9  
Avignon
Who could find better name for this overwhelming fragrance? How could it be described without using pictures? (Ok, Miaw2 solved this question, but I am not enough factual for this.) When I first smelled AVIGNON, I used a very common and totally profane Hungarian expression for surprise: I shove off my hair!

When I sampled FULL INCENSE by Montale, my only one sigh was: If I would feel pure incense instead of this sweet mixture! As it would have been a pray, my wish was granted by AVIGNON.

Grey, ceremonial incense, fragrant as popedom and pray and cathedrals. Cold till shuddering, dusty, stony, and not smoky at all. AVIGNON gives wind to the soul and brings back to memories, to past, to ancient era. I am not christian, I was never enough brave to visit a mass, since I do not know, what should have done, how to behave myself to not make a mistake, so I visited churches only as a tourist. When a mass was celebrated there, I was just standing at the gateway and staring inward even as little child, and wanted to go in, but couldn't. (I can risk the statement, that scent of incense was one of the many reasons why I chose history for studying at the University.)
Now with AVIGNON on my skin I feel that I am not an outsider anymore in this sanctified area of prayer.

After 2 hours the incense flies higher, till the attic of the church, wooden timbers, and dusty, old, worn floorboard...

PS: I have a flacon of hair "styling-mousse" in the bathroom, almost the same design as AVIGNON, and when I shoot a glance at it, I am always so disappointed that it is only a poor hair cosmetic and not this beautiful perfume :D
4 Comments
2.5
Bottle
7.5
Sillage
5
Longevity
3
Scent
Callas

54 Reviews
Callas
Callas
Very helpful Review 5  
Melancholy
Grown up as a Catholic I immediately connect the goings to church for the preparations for my first St. communion and confirmation which are not loved (but demanded).
Within the last few years, unfortunately, it is funeral services which step into memory.

I can imagine the incense smell to the support of a meditative atmosphere just as well. Into combination with other scents I don't have any problem with him either.

I am aware of only incense, though, what depresses me here.
Unfortunately, he seems very oppressive.
For me it is a mystical church smell which I can take for a short time but in the long run would not like to have in my surroundings.
0 Comments
2.5
Bottle
7.5
Sillage
2.5
Longevity
9
Scent
Drseid

820 Reviews
Drseid
Drseid
Helpful Review 6  
Incredible Incense...
A major success from Duchaufour. Avignon is exactly what I envision what a perfect pleasant smelling incense should smell like in real life. It has a very natural cedar and frankincense combo that is incredible smelling. The scent is quite linear, getting right down to business and staying there throughout. I can see some versatility issues with Avignon due to the nature of the scent, but the composition and smell are near-flawless. The only minor gripe I have is contrary to many of the other reviews, longevity on my skin is below average at about 5-6 hours. That said, Avignon is completely deserving of the high praise it has received here and elsewhere. Simply sublime. 4 to 4.5 stars out of 5.
1 Comment
10
Bottle
7.5
Sillage
7.5
Longevity
9
Scent
Sherapop

1239 Reviews
Sherapop
Sherapop
Helpful Review 6  
Everything Tastes Better with Ambrette on It!
Comme des Garçons AVIGNON is an incredibly beautiful incense perfume. I am very pleasantly surprised, having been somewhat disappointed by a couple of the other members of this series I've tried. Why is this one so much better to my nose? I suppose because it's a full-fledged, complex perfumic composition, as opposed to a solution of finely ground incense...

"Several kinds of incense, chamomile, vanilla, patchouli, rosewood and ambrette"...

Small wonder I'm smitten! Ambrette probably puts this over the top from like to love for me. Who knew that a relatively linear incense perfume could be a serious wrist sniffer? For the record, this does not smell like a musty old Catholic church to me. No, on the contrary, AVIGNON smells like something which clearly belongs in my collection: a gorgeous oriental woody perfume!
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Statements

6 short views on the fragrance
KacieNRKacieNR 4 months ago
5
Bottle
9
Sillage
10
Longevity
7.5
Scent
Straight-up high-church incense. Beautiful, but I’m too low-church to pull it off.
0 Comments
TheDunkPapaTheDunkPapa 2 months ago
6
Bottle
6
Sillage
6
Longevity
8
Scent
Very pretty frankincense with little deviation from its course, but takes on a weirdly sweet quality in the air that doesn't jive with me.
0 Comments
TripnoTripno 19 days ago
7
Bottle
7
Sillage
7
Longevity
8.5
Scent
Heavy, almost suffocating mix of incense and wood. Bold and powerful. Gothic church vibes. Nice, but not wearable for me.
0 Comments
Vec2tVec2t 8 months ago
Earthy, slightly green and Elemi Gum overpowering in the opening. Slight woodiness.
0 Comments
KatzevogelKatzevogel 9 months ago
Bitter frankincense for sure. Church in a way that feels old and respected and off-limits and inaccessible .
0 Comments
TombbbTombbb 4 years ago
9
Scent
It is aged church wood all over it, but nicely touched up with something ethereal, but fresh - rose, maybe some other flower.
0 Comments
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