Guerlain, Shalimar, 80 ml. or 2.81 oz. Flacon, Parfum Extrait, Flacon Chauvre Souris, Presentation Avion, 1923, 1960, Paris, France ..

The House of Guerlain is one of the oldest perfume houses in the world. It was founded in 1828 when Pierre-Francois Pascal Guerlain opened up his first perfume store on 42, Rue de Rivoli in Paris.

Pierre-Francois composed and manufactured custom perfumes with the help of his two sons, Aime & Gabriel. His unique approach was to personalize perfume for a specific person, place or event. Honore de Balzac commisioned his own eau de toilette during the writing of Cesar Birotteau, and the periodical La Sylphide, le Journal des Elegances, scented each issue with a different fragrance by Guerlain.

Guerlain catered to the high society of Paris, and obtained a very loyal following. The perfume house was so successful that Guerlain decided to open a flagship store at 15, Rue de la Paix in Paris in 1840. The house was at its peak in 1853 with it's fragrance Eau de Cologne Imperiale. This perfume gained Guerlain the prestigious title of His Majesty's Official Perfumer of France. This in turn led him to create perfumes for other royals such as Queen Victoria of England, the Empress Sissi of Austria, the Queen of Belgium and Queen Isabella of Spain as well as other crowned heads of royalty.

Pierre-Francois passed away in 1854 and his sons inherited the perfume house. Aime became the master perfumer, a tradition that would be upheld for the next master perfumer in lineage. Gabriel managed and further expanded the house.

Shalimar was created by Jacques Guerlain in 1925, as an attribute to the legendary love story between Emperor Shah Jahan and his wife Mumtaz Mahal. Before he became emperor his hame was Prince Khurram. According to the legend, twenty year old Prince Khurram met a young girl named Arjumand Banu at the bazaar where her family worked. Mesmerized by her beauty, after becoming emperor, he made her his wife as Mumtaz Mahal, meaning the 'Jewel of the Palace". After the wedding, the prince and Mumtaz were inseparable, both in war and in peace.

Mumtaz had given thirteen children to Shah Jahan, and died during the birth of the 14th child at the age of 39. Her death devastated Shah Jahan, and he he had the Taj Mahal built in memory of this wife and their undying love. Shalimar is named after the Gardens of Shalimar, which was Mumtaz's favorite garden.

Shalimar is one of the best selling perfumes ever, and its magic is undeniable. The perfume is composed of citrus notes, lemon and bergamot, jasmine, may rose, opoponax, Tonka bean vanilla, iris, Peru balsam and gray amber. Coolness of the citrus notes leads to a floral heart ending with a warm and luxurious trail. The perfume composition remains the same to this day.

Top notes are Citruses, Mandarin, Cedar, Lemon, and Bergamot
Heart notes are Rose, Vetiver, Jasmine, Patchouli, and Iris
Base notes are Tonka Bean, Incense, Vanilla, Opoponax, Ambergris, Sandalwood, Amber, and Leather

Offered here is an opportunity to buy a magnificent flacon of this gorgeous perfume. This flacon was produced in 1960 only and the flacon was known as the 'Presentation Avion', which was only issued in 1960 on Air France flights from Paris to New York. I have removed the original cork seal, which had shrunk over the years, leaving a wonderful dark condensed jus that is simply divine to smell. I have replaced the cork with the blue crystal stopper provided in the box. As I removed the cork, the sillage was great, and I could smell the beautiful fragrance as it wafted up. I have tested this perfume on my skin, and am just amazed at how beautiful it still is. It is haunting and exotic, and it lasted for several hours on the back on my hand. A much beloved fragrance ..

While this flacon measures just under 6" in height, it is much wider and thicker than the 60 ml. version. I am asking more for this flacon because of the incredible quality of the jus ..