Weve loved every Astier de Villatte scent weve ever sniffed, but the French perfume house has really blown us away with their Trois Parfums Historiques Discovery Set. Time travel in a bottle, each sample-sized perfume in this trio is based on an ancient fragrance that was lost to the ages that is, until it was rediscovered by anthropologist and perfume historian Annick Le Gurer. After pouring over archaic texts and records for over two decades, Le Gurer uncovered the ingredients and fragrance notes that once made up many of the mythic scents of the past. She then shared this research with star perfumer Dominique Ropion, who, with his impressive nose and the support of Astier, brought each bygone fragrance back to life. (All while staying as faithful as possible to their original formulas!) Youll find the first three products of their genius collaboration in this set Le Dieu Bleu, a take on the rich, mysterious kyphi incense once burned during ancient Egyptian rituals and healing practices; Artaban, the royal perfume of ancient Rome made from herbs imported from all around the empire; and Les Nuit, an exact recreation of the very perfume once worn by French Romantic-era novelist George Sand. But dont worry about explaining all that to your giftee this set also comes with a guide book (printed on Astiers own antique typographic press, of course) that tells the epic tales of how these colognes came to be. A foolproof gift for scent lovers and history buffs alike, these travel-sized vials are also great for the globetrotter on your list. three 0.33 fl oz perfumes guide bookmade in grasse, france SCENTSle dieu bleu: notes of woody honeyed broom, heady myrrh, green lentisk and fruit opoponax artaban: notes of bittersweet marjoram, cardamom, herbaceous calamus and nard with earthy, resinous and wood accords les nuits: notes of turkish rose, damascena, earthy patchouli and iris with wood powdery accents.GUIDE BOOKtext by Annick Le Guerer introduction by Sophie Mazeaud illustrations by Eva Jospintext in english and french gilded page edgesprinted on antique typographic press paperback160 pagesDimensionsperfume sample: 1" diameter x 2.5"Hgift box: 7.25"W x 4.75"D x 2"Hguide book: 4.5"W x .5"D x 7"H.