Türkiye’s first museum of fragrances, where visitors will be able to experience the scents of various perfumes and learn about the history of perfumery, is opening in the southwestern city of Isparta, famous for its roses, reports Hürriyet Daily News .
The museum, launched as an initiative of the local authorities, will be located in a former Orthodox church, built by the city’s Greek community in 1750. “We discovered that this church once served as a place for perfume production — lavender was distilled in its courtyard, and rose water was used for healing purposes. The idea of turning it into a fragrance museum came naturally to us. After all, Isparta is the homeland of scents,” commented Isparta’s Mayor, Şükrü Başdeğirmen. The museum, one of only five of its kind in the world, displays rare artefacts, including what is believed to be the world's oldest perfume formula—a 4,500-year-old blend of 16 ingredients, one of which is the rose. In addition, visitors have the opportunity not only to observe but also to savour the scents originating from Mesopotamian and Anatolian civilisations, as well as those from the Roman Empire, Egypt, and Greece.
In the museum’s workshops, visitors can also create personalised perfumes, tailored to their body chemistry and scent preferences. “Every fragrance has a unique code. If a visitor returns years later, we can recreate exactly the same scent they once requested,” Başdeğirmen added.
Isparta, home to more than 803 endemic plant species, produces nearly 90 per cent of Türkiye’s lavender and meets about 65 per cent of the global demand for rose oil.