The evolution of a timeless beauty product

According to New Scientist, our species, Homo sapiens, became distinct about 350,000 years ago. And for about 348,980 of those years, there was no such thing as anti-perspirant.

But we did have perfume and lots of it. According to Sarah Everts in her article A Brief History of Perfume: Visiting an Archive of Ancient Scents (available on Literary Hub), for most of our history, we’ve used perfumes to change our bodies’ fragrances, to cover up funky smells, in religious rituals and to signify wealth and power. Some cultures even believed that perfumes could protect us from diseases. And far from the golden or colorless alcohol-based liquids, we’re accustomed to seeing in today’s department stores, perfumes in the past were often contained in ointments or dispersed in fragrant smoke Perfumed oils were equally common, according to the Getty institute — in 2003, archaeologists uncovered the 4,000-year-old ruins of a perfume factory in Cyprus, where ancient Cypriots used olive oil to extract fragrant plant oils.

Animal-derived ingredients, such as glandular oils from musk deer and civet cats, were common for centuries. Ambergris, a waxy substance that sperm whales secrete into their intestines, was highly prized as a fixative during the 18th and 19th centuries. The end of commercial whaling ended the ambergris business as well, but pieces of “floating gold” still wash ashore every now and then and can be sold at outrageous prices. One Thai fisherman could make more than a million dollars after he found a 66-pound chunk in September, according to The National.

Humans smell a lot better than we used to, thanks to modern plumbing and anti-perspirants, but we still love perfume. According to Business Insider, perfume sales spiked in the first quarter of 2021. Industry watchers aren’t surprised — perfume is easy to use, less expensive than other luxuries, and can lift our spirits.