Shalimar (perfume)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Shalimar | |
|---|---|
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| Fragrance by Guerlain | |
| Category | Oriental |
| Designed for | Women |
| Top notes |
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| Heart notes |
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| Base notes |
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| Released | 1925 |
| Label | Guerlain |
| Perfumer(s) | Jacques Guerlain |
| Concentration | Eau de Parfum |
| Flanker(s) |
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Shalimar is a perfume originally created by Jacques Guerlain in 1921 for French perfume and cosmetics house Guerlain. In production continuously since 1925, Shalimar is currently a flagship product for Guerlain.[1]
Shalimar was created by perfumer Jacques Guerlain in 1921, but after another company claimed to already have a fragrance by the same name, Guerlain was forced to rename the fragrance "No. 90" until a legal dispute over the name was settled.[2] Shalimar was re-released in 1925 at the International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts.[2]
Jacques Guerlain was inspired by Mumtaz Mahal,[3] the wife of Shah Jahan, Mughal emperor of India,[4] and for whom the Taj Mahal in Agra and the Shalimar Gardens in Lahore were built.[5] The harmony of Shalimar was created when Jacques Guerlain poured a bottle of ethylvanillin into a bottle of Jicky, a fragrance created by Guerlain in 1889.[1]
Raymond Guerlain designed the bottle for Shalimar, which was modeled after the basins of eastern gardens and Mongolian stupa art. Shalimar's blue, fan-shaped bottle topper was inspired by a piece of silverware owned by the Guerlain family. The bottle was manufactured by Baccarat Crystal and received the Decorative Arts Exhibition Award in 1925.[1][6]
During the 1920s, Shalimar was popular with flappers which helped give it a "bad girl" reputation.[7]
In 1985, Shalimar was repackaged and presented encased in a Lucite box to commemorate the 60th anniversary of its original launch.[5] In 2004, Guerlain issued Shalimar Light by perfumer Mathilde Laurent. However, Shalimar Light was taken off the market and replaced by Eau de Shalimar in 2008.[8]
Shalimar is preserved in its original 1925 formulation in the archives of the Osmothèque, donated by Jean-Paul Guerlain.[9] As of 2017, Shalimar was Guerlain's second best selling fragrance, behind La Petite Robe Noire, with approximately 108 bottles being sold every hour.[1]