Les Souveraines d'Egypte

The Sovereigns of Egypt

Roméa d'Améor 2008

Even as a child, I was fascinated by the ancient Egyptian high culture. Pyramids! Sarcophagi! Mummies! Hieroglyphs! Canopic jars! Grave goods! Sphinx! Pharaohs! Scarab! It all sounded so exotic, so foreign, so fascinating. Once, I was even allowed to admire the bust of Nefertiti in Berlin, extraordinarily graceful. And the fact that Cleopatra supposedly bathed in milk fueled little girls' dreams of beauty, luxury, grace, and majesty.

What I found most fascinating was the mummification. As a child, you get the toned-down version a la "What is what?" and that's just fine. If you look at this process in detail "for real," much of that naive and innocent idea goes down the river, pardon, down the Nile. But I don't want to go into that here; I want to return to my "What is what?" world, where it was simply called "embalming."

And that is the keyword. "Embalming" sounds so exciting, like oils and essences, like pastes and wax, fragrant, intoxicating, numbing, caring, like balm for body and soul. Countless ingredients are slowly and gently ground in a mortar with a pestle until a smooth, precious essence is created, worthy of its purpose.

And "balsamic" was my first thought when I sprayed Les Souveraines d'Égypte for the first time. An immediate "must-have" reflex followed. This dense, intoxicating, delicious perfume dream is wonderfully composed, incredibly harmonious, and beautiful. Many fragrance notes, none of which particularly stand out in my nose, are woven into this unique work of art that smells so precious, noble, and graceful. The fruits in the top note do not create a fruit salad; the flowers in the heart are compact and subtle at the same time, and the unusual base carries this scent for hours. It is a bit sweet, a bit warm, a bit fruity, a bit floral, a bit milky, a bit resinous, but above all, balsamic. I imagine the color as a warm beige with a golden shimmer and very delicate light green speckles. The scent comes across as rather soft and reserved, yet it is also very three-dimensional and intense, and it is precisely this quality that makes it a high-quality and sophisticated perfume. A silky feel-good scent with confidence. Made for Egyptian queens. And, of course, for all other women as well.