The latest from Nez, The Big Book Of Perfume: For An Olfactory Culture. "The team from Nez, the olfactory magazine invites you on a very special journey to explore perfume in all its facets, delving into the heart of a fascinating yet little-known world. This book lifts the curtain on the best kept secrets of perfumery, answering all your questions about the world of smell". 227 pps, $45 at Luckyscent (where you can also see images of a number of interior pages).
Epidemics of bubonic plague in the 16th and 17th centuries, Muchembled writes, ushered in a fashion for the use of strong-smelling ambergris, musk, and civet, as “vital bulwarks against the Devil’s breath.” Smell was incredibly important to French people trying to stay uninfected; the body was seen as porous and could be “permeated” by air with plague in it. Doctors advised that they should wear white, burn sweet-smelling fires, and live life in moderation, to keep humors balanced.
— Slate reviews Smells: A Cultural History of Odours in Early Modern Times, by Robert Muchembled. Read more in The Book of Smells.
Issue 9 of Nez is out, and so is Vetiver in Perfumery: "Originating in India and cultivated principally in Haiti, vetiver is a topical grass whose tangled roots contain a fragrant essence that can be extracted via steam distillation. At once fresh, citrusy, vegetal, woody and smoky; vetiver’s essential oil is a perfume all on its own. Though once emblematic of classic masculine perfumery, vetiver has long-since become a staple of the perfumer’s palette and lent its characteristic aroma to countless compositions for both men and women." 96 pages, $25 at Luckyscent (and Issue 9 is $29 for 160 pages, plus they still have Issues 3-8 in stock).
Issue 8 of Nez is out: "Dior Addict, Opium, Obsession... The allusions to illicit products and the conversation of addiction have long accompanied the creation of perfume. But can the latter really induce habituation? Because if perfume and smoke are originally linked, it is the invention of ethanol production processes that drove the development of the sector. [...] Tobacco, alcohol, hard and soft drugs: how does our sense of smell link to addictive substances?" There's also an interview with Serge Lutens and a conversation with Luca Turin. $29 at Luckyscent, or pay $60 and get a 15 ml bottle of Hongkong Oolong ("A smoky, spicy, milky, leathery tea fragrance" by Maurice Roucel).
Fragrance expert Michael Edwards has revised and updated his reference work Perfume Legends. Perfume Legends II includes the original list of fragrances covering the period from 1882 to 1992 (you can find that list in the review linked above) plus two that were left out: Robert Piguet Fracas (because the formulation was so bad at the time) and Guerlain Nahéma (because Edwards couldn't get the information he needed from Jean-Paul Guerlain). It then brings us up to 2010 with Serge Lutens Féminité du Bois, Rochas Tocade; Christian Dior J’Adore; Kenzo Flower; Chanel Coco Mademoiselle; L'Artisan Parfumeur Timbuktu; and Frédéric Malle Portrait of a Lady. You can order a copy from Fragrances of the World for $145.