Eucalyptus: 1 post

Corsican Eucalyptus and the Scent of the Maquis

A few years ago I met a woman who talked about her fiendishly complex emigration from Russia to Israel in the ’80s and how instead of Jerusalem she ended up living for a year in Ajaccio, the capital of Corsica. I asked what Corsica was like, my own mental image comprised mostly of Napoleon, the French Foreign Legion, and Laetitia Casta. She reflected for a moment and then said that it smelled heavenly. She meant the smell of the maquis. Since then I’ve been obsessed with the maquis, or as it’s known in Corsican, machja.

In Corsica, the maquis is ever-present–this wild scrubland vegetation covers nearly 20% of the island. Even when you don’t see it, it fleets before you in bits of folklore and stories. For instance, the guerilla fighters of the French Resistance in World War II were called maquisards, from the maquis (pronounced in French as ​[maˈki]) that reach up to 10 feet and make for an ideal hiding place. The maquis provides food, medicine, and lore. The scrubland starts at the sea coast–le maquis bas, climbs higher–le maquis moyen, and clings to the mountains–le maquis haut. These low, middle, and high maquis are woven of more than 2,500 varieties of wild plants, and their aromas build up slowly like a pyramid of a perfectly constructed perfume.

Continue reading →

From the Archives

Latest Comments

  • Valentyna in What Do Perfume Concentrations Mean?: Is that Niral on your photo? I’m on the fence whether to buy a bottle now. It’s beautiful, but fades away within an hour from my skin and I am… September 28, 2023 at 5:19pm

  • Aurora in Pink Berries or Pink Peppercorns in Perfumes: Pink pepper is so popular, it is inthe top notes of Le Couvent Fort Royal and as you would expect Fragrantica got confused and describes it as wild berries. I… September 26, 2023 at 2:54pm

  • Judith R in Feel-Good Perfumes: Although traditionally summer is the time for lighter fragrances, I enjoy the lightness of L’Eau de Hiver in winter. This past summer, I wore Love Coconut almost exclusively; the scent… September 25, 2023 at 7:22am

  • Luv Max in Christian Dior Dune : Perfume Review: I have been a lover for Dune since in the nineties… I only wear it in winter , it gives that rich aunty feeling. Dune it’s one of my favourites… September 24, 2023 at 3:16pm

Latest Tweets

Design by cre8d
© Copyright 2005-2023 Bois de Jasmin. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy