Sure, there are some perfume classics. Think Joy or Chanel No. 5. But nobody’s perfume formulas have withstood the rest of time like those of the Egyptians. They are carved in stone, on the walls of the tomb in Edfu. There are hundreds of lines of hieroglyphics filling the four walls of a chamber in the tomb, spelling out portions for scents and fragrant oils to offer to the gods.
Rimming the room below the formulas are drawings of figures holding flowers and vials. I thought they were illustrations of the ingredients and how-to instructions.
Alas, the Egyptologist told me that they were showing offerings, not demos.
I like my interpretation better.
