Jasmin de Corse by Coty 1906

The launch of Jasmin de Corse by Coty in 1906 marks a significant moment in the history of perfumery, reflecting the tastes and trends of the early 20th century. This period saw a flourishing interest in fragrances, with perfumes becoming essential accessories for both men and women, symbolizing luxury, refinement, and sophistication.

Corsica, the birthplace of François Coty, holds a special significance in the creation of Jasmin de Corse. Corsica, an island in the Mediterranean Sea known for its stunning natural beauty and rich floral diversity, particularly jasmine, serves as the inspiration for this fragrance. Jasmine, with its intoxicating floral aroma, has long been revered in perfumery for its sensuous and exotic qualities. Corsican jasmine, in particular, is renowned for its exceptional fragrance, often described as heady, floral, and slightly sweet, making it a prized ingredient in perfumery.

In Jasmin de Corse, Coty masterfully captures the essence of Corsican jasmine, blending it with other complementary notes to create a scent that exudes elegance and allure. The fragrance likely evokes the lush landscapes and fragrant blooms of Corsica, transporting wearers to a romantic and exotic paradise with each spritz.

The endorsements of notable figures like Tatiana Romanov, a Russian princess, and Colette, a renowned French writer, further cemented Jasmin de Corse's status as a beloved fragrance of the era. Tatiana Romanov's endorsement would have added a touch of royal allure to the perfume, while Colette's daily wear of Jasmin de Corse speaks to its timeless appeal and versatility. Their admiration for the fragrance underscores its universal appeal and ability to captivate individuals from different backgrounds and cultures.

Overall, the launch of Jasmin de Corse in 1906 encapsulates the spirit of its time, embodying the opulence, romance, and allure of early 20th-century perfumery. Its association with Corsica and jasmine adds an exotic and luxurious dimension to the fragrance, making it a beloved classic that continues to enchant perfume enthusiasts to this day.

Fragrance Composition:

So what does it smell like? It is classified as a sweet floral fragrance for women. Coty Jasmin de Corse is an very sweet, heavy and lingering with indolic jasmine with smoky undertones.

• Top notes: cassie, neroli, bergamot
• Middle notes: jasmine absolute, orange blossom, orris
• Base notes: civet, ambergris, ambrette, benzoin, castoreum

Chemist & Druggist - Volume 126, 1937:

"All the natural, haunting fragrance of jasmin blossoms, without the heavy, overpowering effect sometimes encountered, has been captured in Le Jasmin de Corse, which is sweet, fresh and elusive."

A 1926 ad reads:

"Jasmin de Corse - breathing of romance and dreams, poetic, illusive, - stirring the soul to exquisite longings."

 

Scent Profile:

Imagine standing amidst the lush landscape of Corsica, the sun kissing your skin as a gentle breeze carries the intoxicating aroma of freshly bloomed jasmines. As you inhale deeply, the scent of Coty Jasmin de Corse envelops your senses, painting a vivid olfactory picture of this enchanting island paradise.

The top notes of cassie and neroli greet you with their sweet, floral bouquet, reminiscent of the delicate blossoms that adorn the Corsican countryside. Cassie, with its soft, powdery aroma, adds a subtle depth to the fragrance, while neroli lends a bright and uplifting quality, like the warmth of the Mediterranean sun.

As the scent unfolds, the heart of Jasmin de Corse reveals its true essence: jasmine, the star of the show, takes center stage with its heady and indolic aroma. The jasmine here is rich and opulent, evoking the image of endless fields of blossoms in full bloom. Intertwined with orange blossom and orris, the middle notes create a symphony of floral nuances, each one adding its own unique character to the composition.

As the fragrance settles, the base notes emerge, grounding the scent with their earthy and sensual tones. Civet, ambergris, ambrette, benzoin, and castoreum combine to create a luxurious and lingering dry down. The smoky undertones of jasmine linger in the air, weaving together with the warm embrace of ambergris and the musky allure of civet and castoreum.

Inhaling deeply, you are transported to Corsica, where the air is perfumed with the scent of fresh jasmines and the beauty of nature surrounds you at every turn. Coty Jasmin de Corse captures the essence of this magical island, offering a sensory journey that delights the senses and leaves a lasting impression.

 Personal Perfumes:

In the 1920s and 1930s, perfume companies adopted the practice of suggesting that women of specific complexions or hair colors should choose particular perfumes. According to perfumers of the time, blondes were recommended to wear light perfumes, while brunettes were advised to opt for heavier Oriental fragrances.

For blondes, fragrances like Paris, L'Aimant, L'Effleurt, La Rose Jacqueminot, and L'Or were deemed suitable. On the other hand, brunettes were directed towards scents such as L'Aimant, L'Origan, Emeraude, Chypre, Ambréine, Fougeraie au Crépuscule, or Styx. Red-haired women were suggested perfumes like Emeraude, Paris, L'Origan, L'Ambre Antique, Iris, and Cyclamen.

However, some perfumers offered alternative advice, recommending that women choose perfumes based on their personalities or moods rather than their physical appearance. This approach proved effective, resulting in the purchase of thousands of perfume bottles, likely by individuals seeking gifts or unsure about their preferred fragrances.

For women of a sunny and joyous disposition, scents like L'Effleurt, Muguet, and Violette were suggested. Those with dreamy and elusive personalities were directed towards Jasmine de Corse, La Jacinthe, and Lilas Blanc. Exotic types were encouraged to explore fragrances such as Chypre, Violette Pourpre, and Ambre Antique. Mysterious personalities were advised to try scents like Ambre Antique, Styx, and Cyclamen. Finally, for those with brilliant and sophisticated temperaments, perfumes like Emeraude, Paris, and L'Origan were recommended.

A 1925 ad reads:

"For the Woman of the Dreamy Elusive Type: Jasmine de Corse, La Jacinthe & Lilas Blanc."

Bottles:

The little bottle below was used in the Coty chest or rack of perfume testers. The bottles are clear glass and the stoppers have a dauber at the end of the stopper plug. Each bottle stands 2.25" tall and was manufactured in France by the Depinoix glassworks. Both the wooden chest and the brass rack have a locking mechanism akin to a tantalus which prevents the bottles from being taken out. Only the stoppers of the bottles can be accessed. This device helped keep the bottles in place during travel as well.

Moth Stopper Parfum Flacon:

One of the first bottles used was the Rene Lalique designed bottle that featured the double moth/butterfly frosted glass stopper, patinated in brown. This bottle was originally designed by Lalique for the Coty fragrance Muguet (Lily of the Valley) in 1912, but was later used for almost all of the Coty fragrances. The flacon is a simple square shape, measuring slightly over 3" per side, with straight shoulders, slightly convex, an indented base, a small neck and a fancy molded stopper. 

The Lalique flacons came in two sizes: 3.34" tall and 3.93" tall. The mark of a genuine Rene Lalique bottle is an impressed intaglio-molded long-tail L "LALIQUE" signature. See photo below. The bottle also has an elongated oval indentation in the center of the base. They were not marked "R. Lalique" so beware of fake signatures applied to old non-Lalique produced bottles. 

In 1914, to save money, Coty commissioned Baccarat to make the flacons based on the original Lalique designs. This caused a falling out in the friendship which resulted in the two men not talking for 13 years. Eventually, the two friends made up and Lalique designed one last bottle for him in 1927. Baccarat started making the bottles in 1916, the bottle being mold number 307. These bottles have sloping shoulders, not as straight as those found on the Lalique flacons. These bottles should be acid marked Baccarat on the base. Like the Lalique flacons, the bottle also has an elongated oval indentation in the center of the base. The Baccarat bottle can be found standing at 3.25" tall. You can see this bottle pictured in the book "Baccarat: The perfume bottles" by Addor Press, 1986, as #307. 

However, the Baccarat bottles also proved to be too expensive, and François Coty, who was excessively cheap, had the Lalique-copied bottles produced at his own glassworks. Like those by Baccarat, these bottles have sloping shoulders, not as straight as those found on the Lalique flacons. The bottles made at the Coty glassworks are marked "Coty" on the base either embossed in the glass or acid stamped. Unlike the Lalique and Baccarat examples, the Coty made bottle does not have the elongated oval indentation in the center of the base, presumably to cut costs. The Coty base is flat. The Coty marked bottle holds 1.6 oz of parfum and stands 3.25" tall, it was housed inside of a green leather covered box. Another size is 2.75" tall.

The beautiful moth stoppered bottle was finally discontinued in 1961.

Chain Cap Travel Bottle:

The bottle shown below has a gilded brass cap complete with its very own chain, I am dubbing it the Chain Cap Travel Flacon. The metal collar is marked with "Coty Paris." This bottle is the modified version of the Moth Stopper Parfum Flacon, which was the Rene Lalique designed bottle that featured the double moth frosted glass stopper. This bottle was originally designed by Lalique for the Coty fragrance Muguet in 1912, but was later used for almost all of the Coty fragrances. This bottle was also made by Baccarat in 1916, mold number 307. These bottles should be acid marked Baccarat on the base. The Baccarat bottle can be found standing at 3.25' tall. This was later made by Coty's own glassworks and will be marked "Coty" on the base.  

 

The Moth Stopper Parfum Flacon's bottle shape was adapted in 1916 originally for L'Origan for travelling by the usage of an inner glass stopper and a gilt brass screw cap, this bottle was made by Baccarat, model number 291. In 1928, these flat, square shaped crystal bottles were available in French leather cases. These bottles held Emeraude, Ambre Antique, L'Aimant, L'Origan,Jasmin de Corse, Chypre, Paris, and possibly others.

A 1922 ad reads:

"Coty's Jasmin de Corse, 1 oz cut crystal, gold cap and chain, regularly $7.00, now at $4.98."

 

Briar Stopper Flacon:

Rene Lalique designed this flacon in 1911, and it was later made by Coty's own glassworks after 1920. The clear glass bottle is tall, with a square base, and features a frosted glass stopper molded with the "briar" motif. The bottle was originally made to house the various Eau de Toilettes, but the design was later adapted to include different sizes including a miniature versions to house parfum. The most common miniature size is dubbed "Petite Modele" and debuted in 1936 and held 0.27 oz.

In the 1920s, the boxes had messages inside reminding the owners of the bottles that ""These exquisite crystal flacons are hand-cut in the Paris ateliers of COTY - Care must be taken in placing them on the dressing table to avoid breakage of the corners."

Sizes:

• 2" tall miniature (0.13 oz)
• 2.5" tall miniature (0.27 oz) - Petite Modele
• 3" tall (0.60 oz)
• 4" tall
• 4.25" tall (1.70 oz)
• 5" tall
• 5.25" tall (3 oz)
• 5.5" tall
• 6" tall
• 6.25" tall
• 6.5" tall
• 8.75" tall

Banded Bottles with Frosted Stoppers:

The bottle has an embossed band along the upper part and a frosted glass stopper molded with flowers and ridge details. People have mistakenly attributed this bottle to both Lalique and Baccarat, however, the bottle does not appear in either companies catalogs and was not one of their molds. It was made by Coty's own glassworks in France.

The parfum bottle was available in three sizes: 1/4 oz, 1/2 oz and 1 oz. The bottles were discontinued in 1932. The 1/4 oz bottle itself was discontinued in 1934.

Bottles stand:

• 2.25" tall - 1/4 oz
• 2.75" tall - 1/2 oz
• 3.75" tall - 1 oz

Larger sizes of this bottle were also created for the boudoir, standing at 6" tall, 7.25" tall and 8" tall and hold Eau de Toilette. These bottles were also used for other Coty perfumes: Eau de Coty, L'Origan, Chypre, Paris, La Rose Jacqueminot and L'Aimant.

• 3 oz bottle.

 

 Etui a Cigarette Presentation:

Also introduced in 1927, was the Etui a Cigarette presentation. Bottle stands 3 1/8" tall and is molded with Coty France on the base as it was made at Coty's own glassworks.

Metal Case (Etui Metal) Parfum Bottles:

A nice purse size bottle set was created and presented in your choice of a crackle finished or a platinum tone nickel hinged metal case around 1928. The bottle used was the banded bottle with the frosted glass stopper. The case stands 2 3/4" tall. It was invented by Philip A. Reutter and manufactured by Scoville Manufacturing Co. These containers were discontinued in 1933, when a new case was introduced, it was a rectangular shape.

Non-Banded Flacons with Frosted Stoppers:

Other bottle could be found with the frosted stoppers, this thin, rectangular 2.5 oz bottle probably held Eau de Toilette. The label reads "Jasmin de Corse Composition Originale de Coty Contenance Garantie 40 dr égale au flacon de luxe." (Corsican Jasmine Original Composition by Coty Guaranteed Capacity 40 dr equal to the luxury bottle.) Bottles and boxes were shipped to the USA to be filled. These bottles were filled in the United States using Coty's imported perfume extracts and domestic alcohol.  The  label message was used from at least 1913 to around 1937. It was trademarked in 1924.

Heliotrope Flacon:


The "Heliotrope" flacon, also known as "Coty Perfume No. 14" was first made by Rene Lalique in 1911 for the Coty perfume Heliotrope. It is roughly a triangular shape with canted corners along the bottom. The bottle was used for various Coty fragrances: Emeraude, L'Aimant, L'Origan, Styx, Chypre, Muguet, Jacinthe, Jasmin de Corse, La Rose Jacqueminot, and Paris.

Airspun Face Powder:

Bottles from the 1950s Period:

 

Fate of the Fragrance:

The perfume seems to have been sold until 1950 then discontinued.


In 2004, to celebrate the firm’s 100th anniversary, Henri Coty, François’s son, commissioned the re-creation of his father’s Jasmin de Corse perfume, to be housed inside a French crystal flacon. These were sold in a limited number of just 200 only available to the French Market, and the perfume was reformulated by Daphné Bugey. Bottom of the bottle is marked in raised letters, "Bottle Made In France". This bottle measures 2" tall x 1 1/4" square. Other perfumes in this limited edition set included: Emeraude, L'Origan, and La Rose Jacqueminot. The perfume set was celebrated with the launch of a book Coty: The Brand of Visionary by Editions Assouline.