House Of Matriarch High Perfumery - Black Sheep - Natural Costus High Perfumery

FRAGRANCE FAMILY: ANIMALIC

Among the rarest of essences - costus root oil possesses the aroma of fine wool. Though it has been employed throughout history in the composition of the finest natural amber perfumes, costus is rarely used in modern perfumery due to it's scarcity and high price. 

A tincture of raw Icelandic black fleece (humanely sheared from the lovely Penelope) in grape spirits alchemizes the costus with notes of white pepper, clover, cistus, copal and barley which tame the unusual earthiness of the costus and reveal it's underlying spice.

The overall olfactive experience is more linear than pyramidal due to the exalting fixative qualities of the costus root, apparent from the top down.  Projects mildly, yet lasts for days on the skin and indefinitely on fabric.  

The black sheep of antiquity were not set apart from flock by their wayward natures, but because of their value! Before dyes were readily available, their fleece was the only way to create black fabric. While the common people of antiquity wore clothing in neutral shades, black was reserved for the clergy, the law and other nobles who were considered a "big deal." The influence, magic and creativity of the black sheep cannot be denied.