Shocking(1929)

Created by Jean Carles for the fashion house Schiaparelli, this composition opens on bergamot, tarragon, and honey, moves through a heart of carnation, ylang-ylang, and cinnamon, and closes on musk, civet, amber, and vanilla. Elsa Schiaparelli, one of the most avant-garde couturiers of the interwar period known for her surrealist collaborations with artists including Salvador Dali, brought that same boundary-pushing sensibility to her fragrance house. The unusual honey-and-tarragon opening, paired with a spiced carnation-cinnamon heart, produces a warm, unconventional gourmand-spice structure distinct from the aldehydic florals dominating much of the era's mainstream perfumery.