SAMPLE .. Coty, A'Suma, 1/2 ml. DECANTED SAMPLE from Flacon, Parfum Extrait, Coty Glass Works, 1932, Paris, France ..

François Spoturno, born in 1874, was originally from Corsica, and he studied perfumery with Antoine Chiris in Grasse for one or two years before moving to Paris, adopting a variation on his mother's name, which was 'Coti', and launching his perfume business with La Rose Jacqueminot in 1904.

Thus, in 1904, François Coty founded a fragrance company in Paris that would bear his name for over a century and become probably the most important perfume companies that ever existed. He was determined to revolutionize a fragrance industry that had seen little change during the 19th century. With Coty, he set about reinventing the perfumer’s fragrance palette.

Just five years later, Perfume City was born. A residential villa outside of Paris that was transformed into a grand industrial complex. Over time, Perfume City grew and by 1920, Coty owned and controlled all aspects of his fragrance production, including flower fields, packaging factories, print shops, and delivery vehicles.

Coty understood that to succeed on a larger scale, he needed to reach a wider audience. His strategy was simple .. it was to offer a product of rich appearance, that was still affordable. Coty commissioned artists and manufacturers, such as René Lalique and the Glassworks of Baccarat, to design beauty products packaging imbued with luxurious quality, never previously available to the masses. The strategy worked and perfumes quickly became an international mass-market luxury product almost instantly. In 1912, he opened subsidiaries in New York and London, an important move for the company.

At the end of World War I, soldiers returned home with gifts of French perfume for their loved ones. This led to a demand for Coty products in the U.S. Coty was one of the first to understand the importance of fragrance packaging, and more specifically a beautiful bottle .. "A perfume is seen as much as it is smelled", he said. His business expanded, eventually encompassing cosmetics and powders as well as perfumes, until he was one of the wealthiest men in France.

In addition to revolutionizing the packaging and marketing of perfume, Coty was also a respected perfumer and one of the greatest known in perfume history.

Coty A'Suma was created by Vincent Roubert and Francois Coty in 1934. The perfume was discontinued by 1957. The fragrance is inspired by the mysterious tropical beaches of Bali, announced as a sensual, exotic, rich and alluring like songs of sirens. It was also touted as "reckless", "strange", "languorous", "smoky", "luxurious", "rich", "intriguing", "mysterious", "sensuous", "alluring", and "entirely individual."

"The greatest of the leather orientals! This is a warm, sweet leather oriental, that combines the best of its predecessors, from which it unabashedly copies .. It combines bergamot, lavender, vanilla and civet in a perfect balance, eliminating any "edges" .. and it's a great crime it is discontinued."

The A'Suma parfum was housed inside a frosted glass sphere with a ball stopper. The bottle was decorated with molded chrysanthemum flowers. Some people mistake this as a Lalique bottle, but Lalique had nothing to do with it, it was designed by Coty himself and manufactured by Coty's own glass works. Coty also drew upon the advice of potential design hiree, Pierre Camin. During a three-hour interview, Coty carefully studied Camin's sketches and kept one. Camin let it slip that he had known virtually nothing about bottles. Coty stated that "A bottle is for wine. A flask is the word we use here." Knowing that the A'Suma flacon needed something else, and as a final test, Coty showed Camin a drawing of the round bottle, asking him his thoughts of the sketch. Camin succinctly replied that it needed "a pedestal". Coty happily agreed and hired Camin on the spot just a few months before his death.

Coty's A Suma is classified as an oriental fragrance for women. It came among other eastern inspired fragrances such as Shalimar and Mitsouko ..

Top notes are Bergamot, Mint, and Camphor
Heart notes are Lavender, Incense, Tuberose, and Heliotrope
Base notes are Sandalwood, Leather, Oak Moss, Patchouli, Vanilla, Tonka Bean, and Ambergris

Offered here is an opportunity to try a sample of this extraordinary perfume from this exquisite crystal boule containing this famous and much longed for fragrance. It is rich and unctuous, smelling both camphorous and leathery, together with the sweet notes of Vanilla and Tonka. Super rare nowadays ..