Perfumes Used by Egyptians Before the Common Era
Key Perfumes
Iconic blends included Kyphi, a complex sacred incense with up to 16 ingredients like myrrh, frankincense, honey, raisins, juniper, cinnamon, and wine, burned in temples for rituals and to honor gods.
Mendesian combined myrrh, cinnamon, and cardamom in balanos oil for warm, resinous notes.
Other notable ones were Susinum (lilies, myrrh, cinnamon), Cyprinum (henna, cardamom, myrrh), Megalion (for skin healing), and Theriaque (for anxiety relief).
Ingredients
Common materials were aromatic oils like balanos and ben (neutral bases), resins (frankincense, myrrh), flowers (jasmine, blue lotus, lily, iris), herbs (mint, marjoram), and spices (cinnamon, cardamom).
Priests crafted these without alcohol, infusing them into fats or burning as fumigations three times daily: resin in the morning, myrrh at noon, and kyphi at night.
Uses
Perfumes served religious rituals, embalming (e.g., Tutankhamun's tomb retained scents after 3,300 years), bathing, healing, and daily life like scenting homes or garments.
They symbolized divine connection, rebirth, and harmony between body and soul.
Komentar
Posting Komentar