Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, August/September 2021, p. 61
Music and Arts
Scent, being an instinctive manifestation of memory and imagination, can transport a person across continents and through centuries.
At the Qatar America Institute for Culture’s newly opened Perfumery Museum in Washington, DC, visitors can learn the history, science and impact of fragrance on societies in the ancient world and in modern times.
A large world map located at the exhibition entrance traces the Incense Route from the Middle East to the Mediterranean. Today, cities along this path are designated by UNESCO as World Heritage Sites to recognize the trading network’s global impact.
The museum also offers interactive displays for guests to test their olfactory skills.
Situated in the center of the gallery, a scent station featuring eight numbered glass apothecary jars with test strips allows fragrance enthusiasts to identify scents, such as myrrh, saffron, jasmine, sandalwood, ambergris and oud, one of the most prominent fragrances in the Middle East. A colorful large scent wheel, designed by renowned fragrance expert Michael Edwards for classifying the 14 scent families used in perfumes, assists visitors with their scent identifications.
Museum guests also learn about traditional objects still used today in perfume production, such as the oud-infused incense bukhoor that is burned inside a diffuser called a mabkhara. While many perfume makers still employ the labor-intensive methods of extracting natural oils, they now have the ability to manufacture synthetic scents.
A display of exquisitely designed vintage scent bottles on loan from Qatar-based antiquities collector Reem Abu Issa reflect the importance that the iconic Paris perfume producers Guerlain and Lanvin placed on fragrance as an essential accessory in the early 20th century.
In the Middle East and Gulf countries, the popularity of fragrance for personal use has increased. Several countries in the region, including Qatar, are the largest per capita consumers of luxury perfume in the world.
—Elaine Pasquini
