The Love Story That Has No Ending
Guerlain's Shalimar
For the creation of Shalimar, Jacques Guerlain was inspired by a love story told to him by a Maharajah visiting Paris:
Over 300 years ago, Shah Jahan succeeded to the throne of his father Jahangir, and became the third Mogul Emperor of India. Jahan had many wives, but he adored only one.
Her name was Mumtaz Mahal.
Some say he loved her unto madness, that she was not his wife but his fever. Victories, empires and riches were as dust compared to her... in his eyes, she alone was the balm that made life bearable.
When she died, Jahan's hair turned white. He would burst into tears at the mention of her name. In her memory he built on of the world's greatest wonders—the Taj Mahal at Agra.
But the Taj Mahal was only an empty monument. While Mumtaz was alive Jahan created a series of gardens for her at Lahore, gardens the like of which had never been seen before, and he called the gardens Shalimar. In Sanskrit, the word means, "abode of love."
From every corner of the earth the most fragrant and delicate blossoms were bought, deep pools were built and crystal fountains with terraces paved in marble. The rarest birds were summoned to sing here and lanterns hung to rival the stars. In the gardens of Shalimar the lovers were truly happy and Mumtaz bore fourteen children to her beloved Jahan.
Did you know?
Completed in 1921, Jacques Guerlain did not launch the fragrance until the International Exhibition of Decorative Arts in Paris (Art Deco) in 1925. The story goes that the creation of Shalimar was sort of an accident. Guerlain received a sample of synthetic vanillin and poured it into a bottle of Jicky, the famous fragrance created by his uncle, Aimé. The result was an early version of Shalimar.
The House of Guerlain has spanned 177 years and is inseparable from the evolution of the perfume industry. The Shalimar bottle was designed by Raymond Guerlain and Baccarat in 1921, and it remains the most successful of all the Guerlain perfumes.
For the creation of Shalimar, Jacques Guerlain was inspired by a love story told to him by a Maharajah visiting Paris:
Over 300 years ago, Shah Jahan succeeded to the throne of his father Jahangir, and became the third Mogul Emperor of India. Jahan had many wives, but he adored only one.
Her name was Mumtaz Mahal.
Some say he loved her unto madness, that she was not his wife but his fever. Victories, empires and riches were as dust compared to her... in his eyes, she alone was the balm that made life bearable.
When she died, Jahan's hair turned white. He would burst into tears at the mention of her name. In her memory he built on of the world's greatest wonders—the Taj Mahal at Agra.
But the Taj Mahal was only an empty monument. While Mumtaz was alive Jahan created a series of gardens for her at Lahore, gardens the like of which had never been seen before, and he called the gardens Shalimar. In Sanskrit, the word means, "abode of love."
From every corner of the earth the most fragrant and delicate blossoms were bought, deep pools were built and crystal fountains with terraces paved in marble. The rarest birds were summoned to sing here and lanterns hung to rival the stars. In the gardens of Shalimar the lovers were truly happy and Mumtaz bore fourteen children to her beloved Jahan.
Did you know?
Completed in 1921, Jacques Guerlain did not launch the fragrance until the International Exhibition of Decorative Arts in Paris (Art Deco) in 1925. The story goes that the creation of Shalimar was sort of an accident. Guerlain received a sample of synthetic vanillin and poured it into a bottle of Jicky, the famous fragrance created by his uncle, Aimé. The result was an early version of Shalimar.
The House of Guerlain has spanned 177 years and is inseparable from the evolution of the perfume industry. The Shalimar bottle was designed by Raymond Guerlain and Baccarat in 1921, and it remains the most successful of all the Guerlain perfumes.
Labels: History
posted by D. Sedcole at 1:25 PM
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