Cuir Ottoman’s leather is rubbed with powdery iris, then warmed with cistus and burnt styrax and dipped in a heady oriental base of Tolu balsam, benzoin resin and incense tears… Egyptian jasmine brings opulence to the heart; vanilla and tonka bean add their tender touch.

Cuir Ottoman, as languid as an afternoon in a Turkish bath…

Though the leather note is appreciated by connoisseurs, it is so assertive it is seldom featured in perfumery. But it is one of Marc-Antoine Corticchiato’s favourite and he built his personal interpretation of it on the smoky effluvia of burnt styrax and birch. From there, he set off for the Ottoman Empire, inspired by the secular tradition of leatherwork in Anatolia – up to the 19^th century Turkish leather was the most highly coveted in Europe. He added iris, which already presents leathery facets, after learning that its powdery notes were often used to soften the smell of the finest skins.

In keeping with his theme, he steeped his iris and leather accord in incense tears and benzoin, whose vanilla facets called for vanilla – which is, along with cistus, the core of oriental perfumes. Tonka bean brings its gourmand touch: its tobacco facet intensifies the leather accord and conjures the lazy smoke of the hookah. To make this oriental leather even headier, it is wrapped in narcotic Egyptian jasmine, as white-fleshed and opulent as the odalisques painted by Delacroix, Ingres and Matisse…

‘From time immemorial and in every culture, perfume has been about seduction and spirituality. With Parfum d’Empire, I wanted to bring it back its original meaning, its erotic and sacred origins. Amorous conquest, spiritual conquest, self-conquest: perfume is a conquest, perfume is an exploration. To give a contemporary expression to this tradition, I draw on the noblest of raw materials, but also on my emotions and on my intuition, because nothing is more universal than what is most intimate. The breath of the gods and the emotion of the flesh… My scents are an invitation to explore the most complex and mysterious of empires: the realm of the senses..’

Marc-Antoine Corticchiato

FREE DELIVERY ON ALL ORDERS OVER €100.

We currently deliver to:

Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Holland, Hungary, Ireland & Northern Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Monaco, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain*, Sweden

For orders of €100 and under the following delivery charges apply.

Estimated Delivery Times

All of our deliveries use a signature service.

* excluding Canary Islands, Ceuta & Melilla