Bois d'Arménie Guerlain 2006

The history of "papier d'Armenie" or "Armenian paper" is a fascinating one. People in Armenia in the 19th century would burn benzoin resin to release its fragrant smoke for disinfecting and cleansing purposes. A Frenchman on his travels came upon this practice and wanted to spread it in his home country. He came up with a way to dissolve the benzoin resin in alcohol and infuse it onto blotter paper. He started a company called Papier d'Armenie which is still around to this day and run by his great-grandaughter.

Being Armenian, I was drawn straight away to the name of this fragrance, "Bois d'Armenie" or "Armenian Wood." Unfortunately the practice of burning benzoin has died out in our culture, and most Armenians have never even heard of the papier d'Armenie that is ubiquitous in France. I only found out about it through reading the description of this fragrance on Guerlain's website then doing my own research about its history.

As you may by now realize, Bois d'Armenie is Guerlain's take on the scent of papier d'Armenie. And even though I have never smelled the burning paper myself, Bois d'Armenie is a beautiful representation of sweet benzoin and a light woody paper accord. Dry frankincense and creamy vanilla add to the experience, rounded out by soft iris. It is subtle but long lasting, and it somehow grows over time, like a room slowly being filled by the scent of burning benzoin-infused paper.