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    Published : 2026-03-30
    Vol. 17 No. 1 (2026)

    Fragrant History. From Rulers’ Collections to Contemporary European Perfume Museums and Vintage Collections

    Alisa Orlova

    https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8847-8989

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.18290/rkult26171.4

    Abstract

    Since ancient times, perfume has been part of human history, not only as a functional object, but also as a specific semiotic code associated with cultures and particular social groups. This article aims to analyse various aspects related to the mechanisms and types of perfume collecting, including antique specimens. In the introduction, the author makes a synthetic overview of some modern collections of this kind owned once by historical figures. The main part of the article focuses on today’s major European museums that exhibit rich collections of perfumes, considering the positive and negative aspects of this type of exhibitions. The last part refers to the conditions related to postmodern private perfume collecting, taking into account both collections of unique specimens from past eras and collecting closely related to consumption. The article is an attempt to examine the changes that have taken place over the ages, not only in the perception of perfume itself, but above all in the understanding of the mechanisms underlying perfume collecting.

    Keywords:

    museums, perfumes, collections, luxury, consumerism, collecting



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    Orlova, A. (2026). Fragrant History. From Rulers’ Collections to Contemporary European Perfume Museums and Vintage Collections. Roczniki Kulturoznawcze, 17(1), 65–83. https://doi.org/10.18290/rkult26171.4

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    Roczniki Kulturoznawcze · ISSN 2082-8578 | eISSN 2544-5219 | DOI: 10.18290/rkult

    © Towarzystwo Naukowe KUL & Katolicki Uniwersytet Lubelski Jana Pawła II

    Articles are licensed under a Creative Commons  Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)