About this series
What is The Art, Fashion & History of Perfumes?
Perfume has travelled through every great civilisation — sacred smoke in the temples of ancient Egypt, the perfumed courts of Versailles, the bottle that changed fashion forever, and India’s own five-thousand-year tradition that is older than almost anything the West credits. The Art, Fashion & History of Perfumes is a live online cultural series that tells this story in five sessions, each one hour, each self-contained.
There is no kit, no prior knowledge required, and no perfumery experience assumed — only curiosity about where fragrance, fashion, and culture meet. Built on the Cinquème Sens Paris curriculum and woven through with India-specific history often left out of the story, this series is for anyone who has ever wondered what their fragrance has to do with thousands of years of human civilisation.
Who this is for
No prior knowledge needed.
This series is for anyone curious about the cultural and historical side of fragrance — whether you love perfume, follow fashion, enjoy history, or simply want a different kind of evening once a month. No prior knowledge is needed. No kit is required. Attend a single session or all five — each one stands on its own.
✓Fragrance lovers & collectors
✓Beauty, fashion & creative followers
✓History & documentary audiences
✓Anyone curious, with no prior knowledge
Inside session 1
What You Will Learn
Coverage: Ancient World → 1900
01
Origins of Fragrance
- Etymology — per fumum, ‘through smoke’: perfume’s origin as sacred incense, not beauty product
- Ancient Egypt — Kyphi, the world’s first recorded perfume formula; Queen Hatshepsut’s myrrh expedition
- The Hebrews
02
The Classical and Islamic World
- Greece & Rome — Hippocrates, Alexander the Great, Rome’s frankincense consumption
- Islam & the Arab World — the Prophet Mohammed on fragrance and prayer; Avicenna’s alembic still; Arab global trade routes
- 🇮🇳 The India Connection — Kannauj, the Deg-Bhapka method, attar, mitti attar (UNESCO-recognised heritage; predates European distillation by millennia)
03
Europe’s Perfumed Courts
- Renaissance to Versailles — Catherine de Medici, the ‘perfumed court’ of Louis XV, L’Eau de Hongrie (1370), the first alcohol-based perfume
- 19th Century & Grasse — the rise of Grasse from leather-glove town to world fragrance capital; synthetic molecules and the Industrial Revolution
Interactive: Quiz — match a civilisation to its signature ingredient.
The five sessions
One series. Five chapters across civilisation.
01
Ancient World → 1900
Scent & Civilisation
From the etymology of “per fumum” to Egypt, Greece, Rome, the Islamic world, the India connection through Kannauj, the Renaissance, Versailles, and the birth of Grasse.
02
1880s–1950s
The Birth of Modern Perfumery
Chanel N°5, Shalimar, and the golden age of perfumery.
COMING SOON
03
1960s–2000
Revolution, Icons & the 20th Century
Bollywood, power scents, and the gourmand era.
COMING SOON
04
2000–2020
Niche, Digital & the 2000s
The niche boom, oud goes West, and Indian fragrance brands.
COMING SOON
05
2020–2025
Today & Tomorrow
Sustainability, #PerfumeTok, AI, and the next perfumer.
COMING SOON
Registration
Pricing & Registration
Session 1 — Live Now
Ancient World → 1900 · Scent & Civilisation
Your instructor
Rajiv Sheth
Master Perfumer & Founder, All Good Scents
The Art, Fashion & History of Perfumes is led by Rajiv Sheth, Master Perfumer and graduate of ISIPCA Versailles — the world’s leading perfumery school, based in France — where he earned a 3-year diploma in Master of Perfumery.
As the official representative of Cinquème Sens Paris in India, and with over 20 years of experience in fine fragrance, Rajiv brings the same depth of expertise to this cultural series — here applied to history, fashion, and storytelling rather than technique.
20+
Years in fine fragrance
3YR
ISIPCA diploma
#1
Cinquème Sens rep. India
The certificate
Complete the series. Earn the certificate.
Each session of The Art, Fashion & History of Perfumes can be attended on its own. But complete all five, and you earn a joint certificate of completion from Cinquème Sens Paris and All Good Scents — recognising your full journey through the cultural history of fragrance.
Sessions 2–5 are coming soon. Stay enrolled to complete the series as each new session is released.
What’s next
Want a hands-on first encounter with perfumery?
The Art, Fashion & History of Perfumes is a cultural series — it tells the story of fragrance, but does not teach technique. If you are ready to smell, identify, and build your own olfactory vocabulary with a real kit in hand, The World of Fine Perfumery is the Academy’s hands-on entry point.
Upcoming batches
Choose Your Batch
Multiple dates available.
| Date | Status | Action |
|---|---|---|
| 2 August | OPEN | Register → |
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