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Price:
£225.00
Size: 100ml
Fragrance Category: Fresh Leather
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| | Top Notes: | Cardamom, cypress, rosemary |
| Heart Notes: | Essence of myrrh & myrrh absolute, honey, copahu balm |
| Base Notes: | Agar oud, Atlas cedar, cipriol, blond Burley tobacco |
The land of Galaad was originally the land of Myrrh, which today lies in Jordan. From the earliest antiquity, this rich, mountainous region used myrrh to produce a balm called “balm of Galaad”, alleged to be a universal remedy. Caravans from Egypt came here to get supplies of cedar wood (from the famous cedars of Lebanon) and myrrh. We have imagined a character, one of those “protégés” of European origin who in the Middle-Ages set up their fief in these parts and cultivated the riches of the Palestinian land. He bears the name of the land where he was born, Galaad. The Galaad of Arthurian legend, also named Galahad, was a Knight of the Round Table, son of Sir Lancelot. Because he had a pure heart, he could gaze upon the Holy Grail without befalling a disastrous fate.
Following the defeat of Acre in 1291 and the fall of the Latin States in the Middle East, many of these “protégés” came to live in the countries of Christian Europe from where their ancestors originally came. They arrived there uprooted, in a culture they did not know. They mostly preferred to settle in the south, which was less harsh and more welcoming than the north of Europe. They brought with them Arabic customs, and often attracted the wrath of the church that reproached them for their sensuality and refined lifestyle. They were denounced for their alleged corruption of moral values. Similar accusations were heaped on the Knights Templar, ancient guardians of Jerusalem, during their trial from 1307 to 1314. The notion of Oriental decadence had its roots in the Middle Eastern habits of bodily care, hygiene and the use of perfumes, virtually abandoned in the West during the Middle-Ages, and the habit of dressing in precious fabrics like silk. As for the dried grass from Atalantis, this was in fact tobacco, of which dried leaves were found with certain Egyptian mummies. According to legend, it was imported to America by the Phoenicians of the earliest antiquity.
Galaad is a fresh leather fragrance, an invitation on a journey, the scent of an elegant rider who travels the world, a cosmopolitan spirit who loves the shade of tall trees and the freshness of mountain streams. A resolutely masculine note that even certain women will want to adopt to hide their frailties. A fragrance that is protective and assertive, yet utterly refined, emanating a peaceful self-assurance.
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