The Birthplace of Eau de Cologne

One of the things I did when I arrived in Cologne, Germany was to visit the famous place that is said to be the oldest fragrance factory – the birthplace of Eau de Cologne. Like any other individual who works in the perfume industry, I too was excited to visit the Farina Fragrance Museum.

“I have discovered a scent that reminds me of a spring morning in Italy, of mountain narcissus, orange blossom just after the rain. It gives me great refreshment, strengthens my senses and imagination.” Johann Maria Farina, an Italian-born perfumer, wrote to his brother Jean-Baptiste when he created a fragrance that would become Eau de Cologne (water from Cologne). He named his product Eau de Cologne, apparently in honor of his new hometown in Germany.

Eau De Cologne has a refreshing citrus-based head note which was the very first perfume of its kind on the market that became sensational at that time. It gave birth to the generic term of this type of fragrance that many other perfume producers then copied.

Johann Maria Farina founded the Johann Maria Farina gegenüber dem Jülichs-Platz GmbH which is said to be the oldest fragrance factory in the world still in existence, located in Obenmarspforten Cologne, Germany.

The Farina Fragrance Museum is open to the public where I too had the chance to see its collection of past devices and apparatus that were once used. Most of all, I was pleased to have a small bottle of the famous Eau de Cologne bought right from the very source, that I kept as souvenir.

For further details about the Fragrance Museum, please click here: Fragrance Museum.