Narkiss (1912)

Narkiss by Roger & Gallet, introduced in 1912, united perfume, literature, mythology and decorative art in a manner perfectly suited to the final years of the Belle Époque. Roger & Gallet was one of France’s most distinguished perfume and toiletries houses, founded in Paris in 1862 by Armand Roger and Charles Gallet. The firm inherited the celebrated Jean-Marie Farina Eau de Cologne tradition and became famous for refined fragrances, luxurious bath preparations and its innovative round soaps, introduced in 1879 and perfumed throughout rather than merely on the surface. By the early twentieth century, Roger & Gallet was internationally recognized for combining French perfumery with sophisticated artistic presentation.  

The name Narkiss carried a particularly rich literary association. In 1898, the openly homosexual French Decadent writer Jean Lorrain published Narkiss, an exotic reinterpretation of the ancient myth of Narcissus. Lorrain—an intimate observer of fashionable, theatrical and sometimes scandalous Parisian society—was also a friend and patron of René Lalique. He dedicated the story “Conte pour mon ami Lalique,” meaning “A tale for my friend Lalique.” Finely illustrated editions followed in 1908, printed within Egyptian-style borders and issued as luxurious collectors’ books. Roger & Gallet’s choice of the title therefore invoked not only the narcissus flower but a fashionable literary work already associated with beauty, decadence and decorative art. The National Library of the Netherlands preserves an account of Lorrain’s Egyptian adaptation.

In Greek mythology, Narcissus was a beautiful young man who became so entranced by his reflection in a pool that he could not tear himself away. He eventually died beside the water, and the narcissus flower was said to have appeared where his body had been. The myth became an enduring meditation upon beauty, desire, self-knowledge and the danger of excessive self-absorption. Lorrain transported the story from Greece to ancient Egypt and transformed Narcissus into Narkiss, a young prince of supernatural beauty raised within the sacred world of Isis. After discovering his reflection in a forbidden pool, the prince becomes spellbound by the image and meets his death among the temple’s sacrificial offerings.

René Lalique was consequently the ideal artist to design the fragrance’s deluxe bottle. Lalique was a celebrated French jeweler, enameler and glass designer whose creations helped define both Art Nouveau and the emerging Art Deco style. His work frequently combined flowers, insects, serpents and idealized human forms with suggestions of beauty, metamorphosis and mortality. His earlier association with Lorrain’s story gave the commission an unusually personal resonance: Lalique was not simply illustrating the perfume’s name but returning to imagery that a friend had once dedicated to him. His innovative collaborations with perfumers also helped transform the perfume bottle from a generic container into an artistic object conceived specifically for the fragrance it held. Lalique’s official history describes how his work brought his artistic talents into modern perfumery.

image created by Grace Hummel/Cleopatra's Boudoir.

Lorrain’s tale is also said to have contributed to the atmosphere surrounding the Ballets Russes production Narcisse, in which Vaslav Nijinsky danced the title role. A direct adaptation from Lorrain has not been firmly established—the ballet returned to a Greek setting—but the proximity of the story, its illustrated revival and the ballet reflects the period’s intense fascination with Narcissus. Narcisse premiered at the Théâtre de Monte-Carlo on April 26, 1911, with music by Nikolai Tcherepnin, choreography by Michel Fokine and brilliantly colored sets and costumes by Léon Bakst. Its appearance just one year before Roger & Gallet launched Narkiss would have made the name seem strikingly fashionable and culturally familiar. The National Gallery of Australia’s Ballets Russes archive documents the production.

Narkiss is not an ordinary French word but Lorrain’s stylized name for his Egyptian Narcissus. It alludes to the French Narcisse and ultimately to the Greek Narkissos. In English it may be pronounced simply “NAR-kiss,” although a French reading would sound closer to “nar-KEESS.” Its spelling makes the familiar name appear stranger, sharper and more exotic, as though Narcissus had been transported from a Greek woodland to a shadowed Egyptian temple.

The name evokes a pale narcissus bending over dark water, a beautiful face reflected in a still pool, and a prince wandering among incense, sacred flowers and temple shadows. Its emotional associations are equally layered: beauty and vanity, longing and solitude, fascination and danger. The final syllable also resembles the English word “kiss,” unintentionally giving the name an intimate and seductive sound for English-speaking customers. It promises beauty, yet carries the melancholy warning that beauty can become consuming.

Narkiss appeared at the end of the Belle Époque, the seemingly glittering period of European cultural confidence that preceded the First World War. In Britain and America, 1912 belonged to the late Edwardian era; in France, it was a moment of transition from the sinuous naturalism of Art Nouveau toward the stronger geometry, exotic luxury and stylization that would eventually characterize Art Deco. Modern cities were being transformed by electricity, automobiles, department stores, illustrated magazines, cinema and international travel, while women were becoming increasingly visible in public life and suffrage movements were challenging conventional social restrictions.

Fashion reflected the same tension between elegance and change. The rigid hourglass silhouette was giving way to straighter, more fluid clothing, although many women still wore corsets. Paul Poiret promoted gowns draped directly upon the body, along with narrow hobble skirts, high-waisted tunics, turbans, harem trousers and vividly colored garments inspired by an imagined East. The sensational success of the Ballets Russes—particularly Léon Bakst’s costumes and scenery—encouraged a taste for jewel tones, metallic embroidery, feathers, beads and exotic ornament. The Metropolitan Museum of Art notes that the Ballets Russes’ Schéhérazade of 1910 helped inspire Poiret’s Orientalist fashions, including his harem trousers and lampshade tunics.

A fashionable woman encountering Narkiss in 1912 might therefore have understood it as more than the name of a flower. It suggested literature, ballet, ancient Egypt and the cultivated decadence of fin-de-siècle Paris. The perfume could become part of the private ritual of dressing and self-contemplation: a fragrance applied before a mirror, surrounded by powder, silk, glass and jewelry. Its association with Narcissus made it especially appropriate to the dressing table, where beauty was created, examined and admired. Yet the tragic myth lent the perfume a darker, more intellectual character than a conventionally romantic floral name.

Interpreted through scent, Narkiss would suggest the narcissus flower not as a simple, fresh garden blossom but as something intoxicating, pollen-rich and faintly dangerous. One imagines a fragrance that begins with the brightness of a flower opening in sunlight, then reveals green stems, narcotic petals, warm spice and an almost animalic depth. Its movement into balsams, powder, musk and ambergris would mirror the story’s descent from radiant beauty into fascination and shadow. The perfume’s sweetness would represent seduction, while its darker undertones would recall still water, temple incense and the fatal consequences of self-enchantment.

Narkiss was distinctive in the unusually complete relationship among its literary name, Lalique bottle and mythological imagery, but its broader character was very much in harmony with contemporary perfumery. Narcissus was already fashionable—Caron introduced the dramatically named Narcisse Noir in 1911—and perfume houses were increasingly favoring exotic names, opulent floral bouquets, animalic materials and rich balsamic foundations. Synthetic aroma chemicals allowed perfumers to magnify flowers and create abstract effects beyond what natural essences alone could provide, while artist-designed bottles turned perfume into a collectible luxury object.

Thus, Narkiss did not stand outside the trends of 1912; it represented them at an unusually sophisticated level. Its narcotic floral character, Egyptian fantasy, literary decadence and Lalique presentation all belonged to a period fascinated by exoticism, theatricality and the transformative power of art. What made it exceptional was the precision with which those elements converged: a story dedicated to Lalique became the name of a perfume, Lalique gave that perfume a physical form, and the ancient image of Narcissus was reborn as a modern object of beauty and desire.

Fragrance Composition:

So what does it smell like? Narkiss is classified as a rich, animalic floral oriental fragrance for women centered on narcissus and tuberose, with spicy, powdery and balsamic amber undertones. 

• Top notes: bergamot, neroli, orange blossom, jonquil, narcissus, cassie, amyl acetate
• Middle notes: phenyl glycol acetate, tuberose, methyl anthranilate, jasmine, rose, orris, ylang ylang, clove, caryophyllene
• Base notes: para cresyl phenyl acetate, vanilla, benzoin, ambergris, tolu balsam, p cresyl phenylacetate, musk ketone, musk xylene, storax, civet

Scent Profile:

Narkiss is a magnificent example of the great animalic floral orientals that flourished during the first decades of the twentieth century. Built around the intoxicating beauty of narcissus and tuberose, it is a perfume of remarkable richness and emotional depth. Rather than presenting flowers as delicate or innocent, Narkiss celebrates them at their most sensual and dramatic, surrounding their heady blossoms with glowing amber resins, warm balsams, exotic spices, creamy vanilla, and seductive animalic notes. The result is a fragrance that seems to bloom with almost hypnotic intensity—a composition that unfolds slowly, revealing new layers with every passing hour. Like many of the finest perfumes of its era, it masterfully blends rare natural essences with the latest aroma chemicals, each synthetic material enhancing the beauty and realism of the natural ingredients while providing greater diffusion, longevity, and complexity than nature alone could achieve.

The fragrance opens with a burst of luminous Mediterranean citrus. Bergamot, almost certainly sourced from the sun-drenched groves of Calabria in southern Italy, immediately sparkles with its unmistakable balance of bright citrus peel, delicate floral sweetness, and refined bitterness. Calabrian bergamot has long been considered the finest in the world because its unique climate produces fruit exceptionally rich in linalyl acetate and linalool, giving it a softer, more elegant character than bergamot cultivated elsewhere. Rather than overwhelming the composition, it gently illuminates the darker floral heart waiting beneath. Beside it unfolds neroli, distilled from the blossoms of the bitter orange tree, likely originating from Tunisia or Morocco. Neroli possesses a cool, crystalline beauty that combines honeyed white blossoms with fresh greenery and sparkling citrus, creating an impression of sunlight filtering through flowering orange groves. Complementing it is the richer orange blossom, extracted rather than distilled, whose creamy nectar-like sweetness introduces a voluptuous floral richness while hinting at the intoxicating bouquet to come.

Almost immediately the true stars begin to emerge. Jonquil, one of the wild narcissus species native to southern France and Spain, possesses a fragrance unlike almost any other flower. It combines fresh green stems with sweet hay, apricots, warm honey, tobacco leaves, and subtle animalic undertones. The aroma feels simultaneously innocent and seductive, bright with springtime freshness yet mysteriously shadowed. Alongside it blooms the magnificent narcissus absolute, traditionally harvested in the mountain meadows of southern France, particularly around Grasse. Few floral materials possess such extraordinary complexity. Narcissus smells intensely green, with facets of fresh-cut hay, damp earth, leather, tobacco, honey, dried herbs, and richly narcotic flowers all woven together. Its aroma is almost impossible to describe because it continually shifts between freshness and darkness, elegance and sensuality. French narcissus remains especially prized because the cool mountain climate produces blossoms with remarkable aromatic depth and refinement unmatched by other growing regions.

Supporting these floral treasures is cassie absolute, extracted from the tiny golden blossoms of Acacia farnesiana, historically cultivated in southern France and Egypt. Cassie possesses one of perfumery's most luxurious aromas—a velvety combination of violets, mimosa, warm leather, almonds, honey, powder, and soft spice. Its remarkable complexity allows it to soften narcissus while simultaneously deepening its mysterious, animalic character. Completing the opening is amyl acetate, one of the earliest aroma chemicals embraced by perfumers. Best known for its delicious banana and ripe pear aroma, amyl acetate contributes a subtle fruity brightness that smooths the transition between sparkling citrus and rich florals. Although synthetic, it does not call attention to itself; instead, it gives the natural flowers an almost juicy freshness that feels entirely believable.

As the citrus slowly fades, Narkiss blossoms into an extraordinarily opulent floral heart dominated by one of perfumery's most celebrated flowers: tuberose. Native to Mexico but cultivated extensively in Grasse, India, and North Africa, tuberose is among the richest floral absolutes ever produced. The blossoms are harvested after sunset when their fragrance reaches its peak, yielding an aroma that is creamy, buttery, narcotic, and almost hypnotically sensual. It suggests white petals drenched in coconut milk, warm skin, jasmine, exotic fruit, and subtle mentholated greenery. Grasse-grown tuberose has traditionally been prized for its remarkable elegance and creaminess, while Indian tuberose often displays an even more voluptuous, spicy richness. In Narkiss, tuberose becomes the luxurious heart around which every other floral note revolves.

Supporting this magnificent flower is phenyl glycol acetate, a beautifully refined aroma chemical that lends delicate fruity-floral sweetness with subtle pear, honey, and lily-like facets. It softens transitions between the heavier florals while giving the bouquet an almost glowing transparency. Methyl anthranilate, another revolutionary synthetic material, contributes one of perfumery's most recognizable floral signatures. Naturally present in orange blossoms, jasmine, and certain grapes, it possesses an intensely sweet aroma that combines orange blossom, Concord grapes, jasmine, and fruity nectar. Used judiciously, it amplifies both the orange blossom and tuberose, giving the floral bouquet exceptional richness and radiance while increasing its persistence.

The floral bouquet continues to unfold with jasmine absolute, likely sourced from Grasse or Egypt. Jasmine introduces velvety warmth with hints of tea, apricot, ripe fruit, and subtle animalic undertones that intertwine beautifully with narcissus. Beside it blooms rose absolute, almost certainly Bulgarian damask rose or the famed Grasse centifolia rose. Bulgarian roses possess extraordinary depth, blending honey, citrus, spice, fresh petals, and wine-like richness, while Grasse roses offer softer fruitiness and velvety elegance. Together they provide classical refinement, balancing the more exotic character of tuberose and narcissus.

A veil of luxurious powder emerges through orris, one of perfumery's most precious materials. Derived from the rhizomes of the iris plant grown chiefly in Tuscany, Italy, or parts of France, true orris requires an extraordinary process. The rhizomes must be dried and aged for three to five years before their precious irones develop. Only then can they be distilled into an essence that smells softly powdery, creamy, violet-like, buttery, and faintly woody. This painstaking process makes genuine orris one of the most expensive natural perfume materials in the world. Orris lends Narkiss an elegant cosmetic softness that wraps the richer florals in velvety refinement.

Adding radiant warmth is ylang-ylang, distilled from flowers grown primarily in the Comoros Islands, Madagascar, and the Philippines. The finest "Extra" grade ylang-ylang possesses a luminous aroma combining banana, jasmine, custard, tropical flowers, spice, and creamy sweetness. It bridges the white floral notes while enhancing their exotic richness. Gentle spice arrives through clove, whose oil, largely sourced from Indonesia's Maluku Islands—the historic Spice Islands—provides warm cinnamon-like sweetness with the unmistakable bite of eugenol. Clove lends the floral bouquet subtle warmth without overwhelming it. Accompanying it is caryophyllene, a naturally occurring sesquiterpene found in clove, black pepper, and cinnamon leaves. Isolated or synthesized for perfumery, caryophyllene contributes dry woody spice, reinforcing the clove while giving the composition greater structure and sophistication.

As the florals gradually settle, the fragrance enters its unforgettable oriental drydown, beginning with one of perfumery's most fascinating aroma chemicals: para-cresyl phenyl acetate (also listed as p-cresyl phenylacetate). Despite its intimidating chemical name, this material performs an extraordinary artistic role. It possesses leathery, floral, honeyed, narcissus-like, and slightly animalic facets that recreate many of the elusive nuances naturally found in narcissus and jasmine absolutes. Used carefully in minute quantities, it dramatically enhances the realism of the floral accord, making narcissus smell darker, richer, and more intoxicating while extending its remarkable persistence.

The warmth of the base is enriched by luxurious oriental materials. Vanilla, traditionally sourced from Madagascar, contributes creamy sweetness infused with tobacco, dried fruits, and warm spice. Natural vanilla contains hundreds of aromatic molecules, making it infinitely richer than sweetness alone. Benzoin, harvested from trees growing in Siam (modern Thailand) or Sumatra, introduces a soft balsamic warmth reminiscent of vanilla, warm caramel, almonds, and polished resins. Siam benzoin is especially prized for its creamy, almost edible sweetness, while Sumatran benzoin displays smokier, more resinous facets. These materials envelop the floral heart in comforting warmth without obscuring its complexity.

Radiating quietly beneath everything is the extraordinary presence of ambergris, one of perfumery's most treasured ingredients. Produced naturally by sperm whales and matured by years of exposure to sea, sun, and saltwater, properly aged ambergris bears little resemblance to its origin. Instead, it smells of warm skin, sun-bleached driftwood, tobacco, soft marine air, sweet hay, and glowing warmth. Ambergris possesses an almost magical ability to enhance every surrounding note, giving the perfume remarkable diffusion and an almost living warmth upon the skin.

Tolu balsam, harvested from trees native to Colombia and Venezuela, contributes rich cinnamon, vanilla, warm leather, and balsamic sweetness that perfectly complements benzoin and ambergris. Storax, obtained from trees growing in Asia Minor, introduces darker smoky resin, leather, cinnamon, and warm amber nuances, adding depth and mystery to the oriental accord.

The final impression is one of extraordinary sensuality. Civet, historically obtained from the African civet cat, undergoes a remarkable transformation in perfumery. In its raw state it is intensely pungent, yet when diluted to microscopic concentrations it becomes extraordinarily beautiful, lending impressions of warm skin, soft fur, honeyed leather, and intimate human warmth. Civet gives white floral perfumes an unmistakable living quality, making blossoms seem almost warm from the touch of skin rather than freshly cut.

To reinforce this sensual foundation, perfumers employed two of the finest synthetic musks of the early twentieth century. Musk ketone offers a creamy, soft, powdery warmth with remarkable diffusion, enveloping the fragrance in an elegant halo that lingers for many hours. Musk xylene, slightly sweeter and richer, reinforces the comforting warmth of vanilla and balsams while greatly extending the perfume's longevity. These synthetic musks never replace the natural animalic materials; instead, they magnify their softness and radiance, creating an incredibly smooth drydown that seems to merge seamlessly with the wearer's skin.

The finished composition is both opulent and unforgettable. Sparkling bergamot and neroli illuminate an intoxicating bouquet of narcissus, jonquil, cassie, tuberose, jasmine, rose, and powdery orris, each flower enhanced by carefully chosen aroma chemicals that reveal nuances impossible to obtain through natural materials alone. Beneath them glows a sumptuous oriental foundation of vanilla, precious balsams, ambergris, civet, and luxurious musks, creating a fragrance that is richly floral yet deeply animalic, radiant yet mysterious. Narkiss embodies the glamour of the great floral orientals of the early twentieth century—a perfume of remarkable sophistication, where the intoxicating beauty of living flowers is preserved, intensified, and transformed into something timeless.

Narkiss Parfum Bottles:

Roger & Gallet entrusted the deluxe presentation of Narkiss to René Lalique, whose connection to the name made him an especially meaningful choice. Jean Lorrain—Lalique’s friend and jewelry patron—had dedicated his decadent retelling of the Narcissus myth, Narkiss, with the words “Conte pour mon ami Lalique” (“A tale for my friend Lalique”). The perfume’s themes of beauty, reflection and transformation suited Lalique’s fascination with flowers, insects and symbolic natural forms, enabling him to translate the fragrance into sculptural glass.

Known as the Narkiss or Althéa model, the bottle was fashioned from clear and frosted molded glass, with dark enamel or patinated accents defining its relief. The rounded body resembles a stylized blossom, while the stopper is adorned with winged insects, variously identified as butterflies or moths. Transparent, frosted and darkened surfaces interact with the light, bringing the floral decoration vividly to life.

Although two principal commercial sizes were offered, four mold variants are recognized: a 4-centimeter sample, bottles measuring approximately 10 and 12 centimeters, and a monumental 22-centimeter display flacon. They differ in scale, petal spacing and stopper decoration, with versions bearing either two or four winged insects.

Only three of these four variants were manufactured by René Lalique, an important distinction for collectors. Authentic early examples may bear the molded initials “R.L.” and the word “BREVETÉ,” meaning patented, on the underside. These marks, together with the bottle’s dimensions and mold details, are essential when establishing attribution and value.

Narkiss-1 flacon by Rene Lalique.

Rene Lalique flacon for the Narkiss extrait.

Narkiss-1 Bottle:

The standard Narkiss bottle, Narkiss-1, is the second smallest bottle and measures approximately 10 cm (3.94 inches) in height and features a more closely spaced floral motif, with narrower openings between the petals than the larger versions. Its matching stopper is decorated with two butterflies, reinforcing Lalique's characteristic blend of flowers and insects inspired by nature. Examples of this bottle from the original mold have a molded R.L. signature and the molded word BREVETÉ (French for patented) to the underside.

Narkiss-1 Bottle by Rene Lalique.

Narkiss-2 Bottle:

In the 2001 addendum to their landmark 1986 reference Lalique Perfume Bottles, Patricia and Wallace Utt noted that the smallest 3.8 cm (1.50 inches) miniature (sampler), known as Narkiss-2, although designed by René Lalique, was not actually manufactured by Lalique. This tiny version is easily distinguished by its molded narcissus flower, whose petals are completely separated all the way to the edge of the design, a feature unique among all Narkiss bottles.

Narkis was issued in a charming miniature perfume bottle of pressed and molded sepia-colored glass, standing just 3.8 cm tall. Though the design is based on Rene Lalique's original design for Narkis, this miniature bottle was not produced by Lalique.

Narkiss-3 Bottle:

The taller Narkiss-3, standing 12 cm (4.72 inches) high, can be recognized by the noticeably wider spaces between the flower petals—both in absolute size and in proportion to the flower itself—as well as a more elaborate stopper ornamented with four butterflies. These differences give the 12 cm bottle a lighter, more open appearance despite retaining the same overall composition. Examples of this bottle from the original mold have a molded R.L. signature and the molded word BREVETÉ (French for patented) to the underside.

Narkiss-3 bottle by Rene Lalique.

Narkiss-4 Bottle:

The fourth variant, known as Narkiss-4, is an impressive display bottle (factice) measuring approximately 22 cm (8.66 inches) in height. At first glance it appears nearly identical to the standard 10 cm version, but its dramatically larger scale immediately sets it apart. While close examination may reveal additional subtle differences in the molded details, the display bottle was intended as a striking counter display for perfumeries and would not easily be mistaken for any of the smaller production sizes. Together, these four versions illustrate how René Lalique successfully adapted a single Art Deco-inspired floral design for miniature samples, retail bottles, and oversized shop displays while preserving the graceful aesthetic that made the Narkiss bottle one of Roger & Gallet's most recognizable creations.

 

Narkiss-4 factice bottle by Rene Lalique. Photo via  Sotheby's.

 

Narkiss Lotion Bottle:

Introduced in 1912, Roger et Gallet's Lotion Narkiss was housed in a colorless pressed-blown glass bottle with a distinctive flat, gourd-shaped body and rectangular cross-section. Decorated with a narcissus motif on the front and a neck label reading "Lotion," it was fitted with a drip-proof Stilligoutte stopper and crafted by Verrerie Pochet et du Courval, combining elegant Art Nouveau design with practical functionality.

Narkiss Lotion bottle by Pochet et du Courval.

Narkiss Face Powder:

The Narkiss face powder was housed in a round cardstock box measuring approximately 9.5 centimeters (3¾ inches) in diameter, closely resembling the presentation created for the parfum. Its lid features a stylized narcissus based on a design by René Lalique, visually uniting the powder with the fragrance’s floral theme and prestigious artistic identity.

Narkiss face powder box.

Narkiss Face Powder Box.

Product List 1919:

• 4666 Extract, small size, in case
• 4667 Extract, medium size
• 4668 Crystallized brilliantine

Fate of the Fragrance:

The date of Narkiss’s discontinuation remains unknown, although advertisements confirm that it was still being sold in 1925. Today, the fragrance survives chiefly through its exquisite bottles, which are eagerly sought by both perfume-bottle enthusiasts and collectors of René Lalique’s work. These rare flacons preserve the legacy of a vanished perfume while remaining admired as important examples of early twentieth-century decorative glass.