L'Arbre de Vie

The materials

61 naturals, each with its own page

Every natural material in the eight chapters of L'Arbre de Vie: what it is, where ours is grown, how it smells and where it lives in the tree. Written by the perfumer. Where no origin is printed, none is claimed.

Citrus

8
Bergamot fruits and leaves on pale travertine in warm afternoon light BergamotCondofuri, Reggio Calabria, ItalyIII · IV · V · VIII Two lemons with leaves and a curl of zest on handmade paper in raking sunlight LemonCondofuri, Reggio Calabria, ItalyI · II · III A blood orange cut open on travertine stone beside a whole fruit and a leaf Blood orangeItalyI Small red mandarins with leaves, one peeled, on handmade paper in afternoon light MandarinItaly (red mandarin)III · V Green limes, one halved, on a travertine slab with water droplets in warm light LimeMexicoII A red grapefruit cut in half with a curl of peel on handmade paper GrapefruitUnited StatesIV A cut branch of bitter orange with glossy leaves and small green fruits on handmade paper PetitgrainParaguayIII A sprig of litsea cubeba with clusters of small green berries on travertine stone Litsea cubebaChinaVI

Flowers

8
Fresh bitter orange blossoms and buds scattered on handmade paper in raking light NeroliTunisiaI · III · VII Freshly picked orange blossoms spilling from a small woven basket on travertine Orange flower absoluteMoroccoII · III Rose geranium leaves and small pink flowers on handmade paper in afternoon light GeraniumEgyptI · II · IV · VI A single pale pink damask rose in full bloom with fallen petals on handmade paper RoseRose Valley, Bulgaria; absolute from Morocco and BulgariaIII · IV · VI · VIII Jasmine sambac buds and open white flowers, a few strung on cotton thread, on travertine Jasmine sambacIndiaII · III A white champaca flower with narrow cream petals and glossy leaves on handmade paper MagnoliaChinaII A sprig of osmanthus with tiny golden orange flowers clustered along the stem on travertine OsmanthusChinaVIII Dried orris rhizomes with a single pale blue iris flower on handmade paper OrrisDistilled in Grasse, FranceII

Herbs

9
A loose bundle of fresh lavender stems tied with linen string on handmade paper LavenderFrance and BulgariaV · VII A generous bunch of lavandin with long violet spikes tied with twine on travertine LavandinFranceII Clary sage flowering tops with papery pink bracts and velvet leaves on handmade paper Clary sageFranceI · VII Wild rosemary sprigs with pale blue flowers on a slab of travertine in warm light RosemaryTunisiaV · VII A small bunch of Spanish thyme with tiny pink flowers on handmade paper ThymeSpainII · VI A juniper sprig with blue black berries dusted with bloom on travertine stone Juniper berryBulgariaII · VIII Fennel seeds spilling from an unfolded linen sachet with a fresh fennel umbel on paper Sweet fennelAustriaII A davana flowering herb with silver green leaves and small yellow flower heads on paper DavanaIndiaVIII A sprig of wormwood with silvery grey feathery leaves on a slab of travertine WormwoodUnited StatesVII · VIII

Spices

9
Whole star anise fruits, one broken to show its glossy seeds, on travertine stone Star aniseOrigin not printedII A fresh ginger rhizome sliced to show pale flesh on a slab of travertine GingerAfricaI A small heap of black peppercorns beside a dried pepper spike on handmade paper Black pepperIndiaI · II A sprig of pink peppercorns on the branch with loose rosy berries on handmade paper Pink pepperPeru; Brazil and RéunionI · II · IV · VI Whole nutmegs, one cracked to show the marbled kernel, with red mace on travertine NutmegIndiaI · II Green cardamom pods, one split to show dark seeds, on handmade paper in raking light CardamomCobán, Alta Verapaz, GuatemalaVII · VIII Quills of Ceylon cinnamon bark, one broken into flakes, on travertine stone CinnamonSri LankaI · VI · VII Dried clove buds in a small heap with a fresh clove branch on handmade paper CloveIndonesiaV Cumin seeds heaped on a fold of raw linen resting on a travertine slab CuminIndiaVII

Woods

10
A cypress branch with scale like leaves and small round cones on travertine stone CypressSpainII A Scots pine branch with long paired needles and a resinous cone on handmade paper Scotch pineOrigin not printedI A rough block of dense dark guaiacwood with pale shavings on travertine stone GuaiacwoodGran Chaco, South AmericaI · III · V · VI · VII · VIII Pale honey coloured amyris wood pieces with curling shavings on handmade paper AmyrisHaitiII · IV · V · VIII A block of red cedar heartwood with pencil like shavings curling on travertine stone Virginia cedarwoodUnited StatesII · III · VIII Gnarled juniper wood pieces with silvery bark and a small juniper sprig on travertine Texas cedarwoodTexas, United StatesII · V A piece of Atlas cedar wood with a small green cone and short needles on handmade paper Atlas cedarwoodMoroccoII · VI · VIII Pale gold sandalwood chips beside a small heap of sandalwood powder on travertine SandalwoodWestern AustraliaVII · VIII Smooth pale rosewood chips with a sprig of green leaves on handmade paper RosewoodOrigin not printedVII A piece of dark resinous agarwood with a single drop of oud oil on travertine stone OudSylhet, BangladeshVI · VII

Roots

3
A bundle of washed pale vetiver roots tied with twine on a travertine slab VetiverHaitiII · IV Dried crinkled patchouli leaves with one fresh green sprig on handmade paper PatchouliIndonesiaII · V · VI · VIII Dark tuberous roots of cypriol nagarmotha grass with dried grass blades on travertine CypriolIndiaII · VI · VII · VIII

Resins

11
A heap of pale golden frankincense tears on handmade paper in raking light FrankincenseSomaliaI · II · IV · VIII Reddish brown lumps of myrrh resin in a small heap on travertine stone MyrrhSomaliaIII A small mound of pale soft elemi resin with a single leaf on travertine ElemiPhilippinesII · VI Amber and cream coloured benzoin resin tears with a piece of bark on handmade paper BenzoinLaos (Siam benzoin); Sumatra, IndonesiaIII · V · VIII Dark styrax resin in an unglazed clay dish with a sweetgum leaf and seed pod on travertine StyraxOrigin not printedII · VI · VIII Cistus flowers with white petals and crimson spots beside sticky labdanum gum on paper LabdanumSpainI · II · IV · V · VI · VII Golden copaiba balsam pooled in an unglazed clay dish with bark on travertine CopaibaBrazilI A dark balsam drop on dipterocarp bark with a two winged seed on travertine Gurjun balsamOrigin not printedVII · VIII Wrinkled tonka beans, one cut to show the pale interior, on handmade paper Tonka beanVenezuelaV Cured vanilla pods, one split to show the seeds, tied with twine on travertine VanillaMadagascarII · IV · V A curl of white birch bark with a dark drop of birch tar on travertine stone Birch tarOrigin not printedII

Leaves

3
Loose black tea leaves in a small heap with a dried tea sprig on handmade paper Black teaOrigin not printedI · III Dried coarse cut yerba maté leaves with one fresh leaf on travertine stone MatéBrazilII A tuft of pale grey green oakmoss lichen on a piece of oak bark on handmade paper OakmossOrigin not printedII

Origins as recorded in the house formula books and on the supplier documents of each material. The proportions and the construction of each chapter are the house's own.

The House List

New chapters, private releases, and the occasional letter from the house.

One or two letters a month. Nothing else.