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Opoponax
Impérial Opoponax

7.7 / 10 175 Ratings
A popular perfume by Les Néréides for women. The release year is unknown. The scent is sweet-oriental. The production was apparently discontinued.
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Main accords

Sweet
Oriental
Spicy
Powdery
Resinous

Fragrance Pyramid

Top Notes Top Notes
Orange zestOrange zest BergamotBergamot
Heart Notes Heart Notes
HawthornHawthorn SandalwoodSandalwood Grasse jasmineGrasse jasmine
Base Notes Base Notes
MyrrhMyrrh BenzoinBenzoin VanillaVanilla MuskMusk
Ratings
Scent
7.7175 Ratings
Longevity
7.7135 Ratings
Sillage
6.9126 Ratings
Bottle
6.6119 Ratings
Value for money
8.414 Ratings
Submitted by DeGe53 · last update on 09/09/2025.
Source-backed & verified

Smells similar

What the fragrance is similar to
Venise (2008) by Yves Rocher
Venise (2008)
Kisu by Tann Rokka
Kisu
I Am Woman (Eau de Parfum) by Joan Collins
I Am Woman Eau de Parfum
Lily Prune - Sublime Vanilla by Ulric de Varens
Lily Prune - Sublime Vanilla
Shalimar Ode à la Vanille by Guerlain
Shalimar Ode à la Vanille
Gris clair... (2006) by Serge Lutens
Gris clair... (2006)

Reviews

19 in-depth fragrance descriptions
Pipette

122 Reviews
Pipette
Pipette
Very helpful Review 5  
What is in a name ?
When I started with perfumes, and that is many years ago, among the general impression of a scent I also paid attention to the notes. My favorite scent at that time, Shalimar, had among its base notes the ingredient "opoponax". Opoponax (or Oppoponax) ... what is this, I asked myself. Fast forward several decades and that name came up again and again in a perfume discussion group, as the label Les Nereides "Imperial Oppoponax" and mainly because of its medicinal smell. Alright, I said, if I like it so much in the base notes of my favorite scents ... now what would the ingredient in almost pure form smell like?

A 5 ml decant from The Perfumed Court was the first attempt to shed light on the matter. It was a simple roll-on. At first, there was nothing special except a huge waft of vanilla. On that day, after having generously applied the roll-on on my neck and arms, I ran to the Bank in the deepest Winter weather. Inside, as I leaned over the table to fill out papers, my nose picked up this very enticing scent. Who, what ... smells so good here? None other than myself, as I could sniff my arm while the warm air inside the Bank had magnified the scent after the cold Winter air. There was definitely that medicinal note, nothing really wrong with it, rather an interesting note with balsamic warmth. Comfortable and cozy, let's relax in front of a fire place, if only in fantasy.

OK, fine, I forgot about that little roll-on after a while and just by hazard, applied a little before grocery shopping, like a go-to scent one would grab without any particular plan. As compliments were extended while I was waiting in line before the check-out counter, there must have been something right about that scent after all.

Sometimes others can lead you to a good scent.

Technically speaking, this is a soft scent, round, warm, with a slight medicinal touch which is rather comforting instead of off-putting or demanding. This is a little master piece of a regular perfume which does not aim for more than simplicity.
1 Comment
Tar

261 Reviews
Tar
Tar
Helpful Review 5  
Velvet
The name of this perfume drove me, as a bloodhund is driven by its flair on the right track of the prey. The unfolding is gorgeous.
Wet soil-velvet.

Ground, sweet myrrh, fresh and spicy benzoin. I really like this stage, if it would be a bus stop, I could wait there with such wide smile as Totoro! Later on vanilla overswell the other notes, and the final result is a unified, exaggeratedly sweet base with a light bitter almond cap, as the clouds swim above a mountain. I could compare it to marzipan aroma.

Half hour after the almost-unisex introduction it gets almost unwearable for gentlemen.
It lasts 6-7 hours on my skin, sillage is sufficient, much stronger then a skin-scent.
3 Comments
Sherapop

1240 Reviews
Sherapop
Sherapop
Helpful Review 2  
A Warm and Golden Oriental Skin Scent
Some reviewers have compared The People of the Labyrinths LUCTOR ET EMERGO to Les Néréides OPOPONAX, of which I was recently sent a sample by the generous SystemeD, so I decided to give it a whirl. I guess that I'm confused by the comparison. No cherries; no almonds. I also smell no lavender (as jtd reports, below). So what do I smell?

Something golden and ambery. In this case, it seems like a cross between an orthodox labdanum amber and an ambergris. The labdanum, if present, is light. The ambergris, if present, is light. A couple of reviewers have referenced Calvin Klein Obsession, and there is no doubt some overlap in the golden brown notes, but OPOPONAX serves them up in a mild enough dose that by the drydown this perfume feels like a skin scent. It's warm and simple and golden. Much simpler than Yves Rocher VOILE D'AMBRE, to which others have compared this composition.

I guess that people are perceiving overlaps, and there are between all of these various creations, but OPOPONAX is its own perfume, not a copy or a flanker of anything else. I would characterize this as a lighter oriental scent without going so far as to fall into the recently invented genre of thin (watery) oriental fragrances, which I myself do not really like. No, this one still seems fat-soluble, but the golden layer applies as a very thin patina over the skin.
0 Comments
jtd

484 Reviews
jtd
jtd
Helpful Review 2  
not my bag
Many people like this perfume, so I know I’m swimming upstream here, but this is one unappealing perfume. I think it strives for harmony, but winds up feeling like motion-sickness. Lavender and amber are like their own one-material harmonies. They generally form pleasing accords so easily. And opoponax is one of the more appealing botanicals, rich but jagged, strikingly handsome.

Combined in this perfume, they form a cloying mix that sticks to the back of my throat like sick. Reminds me that individually beautiful elements can be used to make a mess.
0 Comments
Pollita

385 Reviews
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Pollita
Pollita
Top Review 41  
Who were you?
Who doesn't know it? The "Tip of the tongue" phenomenon. When something is on the tip of your tongue, a name, a term, a designation, but you just can't seem to recall it. I, on the other hand, remember a person, but I no longer know who he was, what he looked like, or what our relationship was. It's all gone. I only know that I have retained the memory of his scent to this day.

Even the first sniff of Opoponax by Les Nereides brings me back to him. I can smell him, with his warm, spicy sweetness that enchanted me back then. Vanilla, benzoin, and a few woody notes embrace the sweet, soft myrrh and let it shine. In the background, a few flowers bloom, and there's also something fruity that I find here in the pyramid as orange peel. This fine, sweet myrrh in Opoponax has almost something of dark chocolate. I was always sure that chocolate was involved in this scent. And what I also suspect to sniff out is a soft leather note that gives the fragrance a masculine touch.

I remember so clearly that I found this scent fascinating on you back then. Now I know the name of your perfume, but I have no idea who you were. You definitely meant something to me, because otherwise I wouldn't be able to remember so well how wonderfully you smelled.

"Something good comes back," my grandmother used to say. Maybe I'll remember who you were someday? I believe your hair was long.

A heartfelt thank you to Susan for the sample. That was an eye-opening experience today, and what a beautiful one! And now I'm constantly pondering (and sniffing).
34 Comments
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Statements

24 short views on the fragrance
Amazing sweet balsamic. Like a moist orange cake drizzled with a honey made of amber. Excellent value for money too.
0 Comments
23
15
Balsamic pure citrus freshness
With a slightly bitter undertone
At the beginning
A slightly animalic base note
Makes it a bit old-fashioned
Ending cozy
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15 Comments
11 months ago
16
11
I have associations with lemon cake or orange desserts. Sweet resins, kept fresh by the citrus. Noble, natural, powdery, light.
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11 Comments
5 years ago
15
6
Marzipan-like, resinous, sweet....soft, warm, gentle and rather subtle....Winter wellness...
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6 Comments
15
6
After orange freshness, I taste Champagne Truffle Cream. Myrrh at the center of sandalwood and sweetened flowers of lovely benzoin. A candidate for purchase.
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6 Comments
11
4
A resinous angel ...
captivating and soothing!
Gently oriental ... moderately sweet.
Here, the musk adds the finishing touch :) Lovely scent!
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4 Comments
11
1
Warmer balsamic cuddle scent! Opoponax, dried orange peel, myrrh, sandalwood, and benzoin bring warmth and a smile.
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1 Comment
10
1
A fine-spicy comfort for the soul and a Christmas cuddler. Very sweet but still far from the bakery shelf.
Marzipan confection without weight gain.
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1 Comment
9
3
Like "Aura Sublime" in my nose, just softer and rounder. And it's even prettier and more affordable - tse! ;-)
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3 Comments
9
2
This is what Opoponax smells like - warm, sweet, balsamic, powdery, with vanilla and myrrh. Great progression that ends in the finest powder. Awesome mix!
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2 Comments
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