Le Livre des Parfums, by Eugene Rimmel
Preface by d’Alphonse Karr
n.d. c.1870
First French Edition
First published in London in 1865, this is the First French Edition of Le Livre des Parfums by Eugene Rimmel. Preface by Alphonse Karr. No date: Publishing records indicate 1870.
Octavo: xix, [1], 431, [1] p. Bound in red percaline publisher's binding. The cover and spine are blind-stamped ruled with ornamental borders, floral arabesque decorations, and publisher’s colophon.
Condition notes: Good condition. Cosmetic crack in red cloth at cover joint. Inside hinge is secure. Some rubbing and darkening of gilt on spine and spot of gilt loss over “r” in parfums. Some rubbing to the gilt on the cover and age-darkening of red cloth. Cover remains clearly readable and makes for a beautiful display.
Matte blue/gray endpapers.
Twelve chromolithographs by Jules Chéret with tissue guards, and numerous textual wood engravings by de A. de Neuville, Duhousset, Chéret, etc.
Light foxing to the tissue guards, some light spots of foxing throughout.
About this book:
Le Livre des Parfums explores the history and science of perfumes dating back from ancient times to the Victorian era. Written by French-born perfumer and businessman Eugène Rimmel who is called "The Prince of Perfume".
Copied from wikipedia, [The Author] "Eugène Rimmel (c. 1820–1887) was a French-born British perfumer and businessman, responsible for manufacturing and marketing some of the earliest commercially made cosmetics, through his company House of Rimmel, (now a division of Coty Inc.).
Rimmel was born in France, he moved with his family to London when his father accepted an invitation to manage a perfumery on Bond Street. Rimmel was apprenticed to his father. In 1834, he opened his own perfumery, the House of Rimmel. In the same year father and son produced their first cosmetic products. By the age of 24, Eugène Rimmel had become an immensely talented perfumer and cosmetics innovator. Considered by many beauty historians as a trail-blazer of the beauty and healthcare industries, Rimmel contributed greatly to the concept of hygiene and bathing. He was also among the first to develop scented pomades, mouth rinses and his signature "Toilet Vinegar".
His most innovative invention may well be the first commercial non-toxic mascara, which became so popular that "rimmel" is to this day the word for "mascara" in several languages including French, Italian, Portuguese, Persian, Romanian, Spanish, Turkish and Arabic.
Rimmel was also considered an exceptional marketer and produced detailed mail order catalogues and advertising programmes with English theatres.
In 1865, he published [in London] The Book of Perfumes, which appeared in 1870 in a French translation (Le Livre des Parfums) with a preface by Alphonse Karr."