IDK the history of perfume, but I'd imagine that scents were worn more heavy in the 16th C than in the 17th C when people began to bathe.

The Eau de Cologne composed by Farina was used only as a perfume and delivered to "nearly all royal houses in Europe". Supposedly, Bonaparte used it but there are other claims from various houses so the poor man must have simply drowned in cologne. Have a look through them; perhaps there is a name or bottle picture that strikes a memory chord for you – I hope so.

It's much more of a thing you'd use to make yourself feel fresh and clean for a little bit without trying to grab attention.

The citrus and alcohol content in this is incredible at inhibiting bacterial growth and neutralizing some of that "hot weather musk" that may develop with a more natural hygiene routine (read: no chemical deodorizers or antiperspirants). Yes my German grandmother wore it - she had an amazing dressing table set of a huge curved bottle with a balloon hand-pump covered in turquoise cloth, and I'm so mad I didn't inherit it.With the multitude of fragrances out there and most unaffordable I guess we can take a break from this to sport some tried and true fragrance. An absolute triumph of sour citrus notes of juste pulvérisé fused with a fresh and lively floral blend of lavender and neroli, with lively aromatic notes of rosemary, widely perceptible. but commanding a room was never what this scent was about, and I've found that this can be helpful at times (especially since *not* wearing a fragrance of *any* sort makes me feel like something is missing or incomplete). I never believed in paying big money for citrus colognes, and 4711 proves that point - it smells effortlessly classy and high-quality.