The cologne has a rather complicated story - the Italian Giovanni Maria Farina invented it, it was produced in the German city of Cologne, and it is called in French. But there is an explanation for this fact. It turns out that Giovanni Maria Farina, in her young years, went to foreign lands in search of happiness and, by the will of fate, ended up in Cologne, where he became a seller in a shop. Among other goods in the modest shop were perfumes, which prompted Farin to create a new composition of “fragrant water”, which he called “Cologne Water” in honor of the city, and this was in 1709.
At first, only the inhabitants of Cologne knew about the new product, but in 1756 the Seven Years War began in Europe and the French soldiers passing through the city bought up a huge amount of water. For a man who was in military conditions, but who loved cleanliness, cologne was very useful. Other war veterans also learned about this invention from the French soldiers - the British, Swedes, Prussians, Russians ... So, thanks to the French, Cologne Water spread across Europe, and then around the world. Cologne is pronounced "Cologne" in French. In Russian, the word “colony” was first feminine.
The first cologne, which appeared in the XVIII century, was rather a means of hygienic, even medicinal, rather than aesthetic. It was widely used in medicine, cologne saturated with sugar disinfected the oral cavity, it was added to bathing water and wine. Even the instruction was attached to the bottle of cologne, which recommended that young people dilute twenty or thirty drops of the cologne with water or wine, and the elderly - up to sixty drops and take from headaches and heart palpitations.
The cologne, to which floral notes began to be mixed, becomes a luxury item only in the second half of the 20th century. “Cologne Water” made a real revolution in perfumery. The recipe proposed by Jean-Marie Farin was made from grape spirit with the addition of bergamot, citron, rosemary, malabar cardamom and orange, it remained a secret for a long time and was inherited. But gradually, other factories began production of cologne based on grape spirit and essential oils. Interestingly, in ancient Egypt, the female pharaoh Hatshepsut used liquid, which included bergamot, frankincense and alcohol.
In Russia, the mass production of cologne began during the years of Soviet power. At that time, they did not particularly care about adhering to the technology of production of cologne, but Soviet men willingly used domestic brands of cologne. Such legendary brands as the Cipre cologne, the Triple or the Eugene cologne are still produced by domestic perfumes.
The triple cologne, from which the Russian perfumery production began, stood at that time in each hairdressing salon on the bedside table and in the first-aid kit of each mistress. His smell was a little pungent, some kind of hooligan. Cologne water became the Triple Cologne thanks to Napoleon, who in 1810 ordered the development of a disinfectant for soldiers with threefold protection. It should have a healing and hygienic effect, as well as a good refreshment. And such a tool was invented - it was the Triple Cologne, which, after a hundred years at the exhibition in Paris, receives the Grand Prix.
Another popular cologne, produced by domestic perfumers, was called in tune with the French version of the pronunciation of the name of the island of Cyprus. According to legend, the creators of Shipra visited the island and were delighted with the smells of exotic plants that grew there, in particular, sandalwood. It was decided to perpetuate these aromas precisely in the cologne, which immediately became part of the colognes of the Extra group - this is in accordance with GOST 1971.