Samharam

Samharam (in the area of Khor Rori) is a now defunct ancient and powerful city and port of the historic region of Oman, inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. It was one of the 2 major cities and ports of this region associated with the historic trade route of the ancient and medieval world. And what was this trail different? The incense trade, right from the trees of this region. Trade flourished in this region for many centuries, much longer, unfortunately the key Samharam, that is, from the 3rd century B.C. - 5th century CE After this city, there are only ruins left that attract tourists, historians and connoisseurs of incense. We are talking here especially about Frankish incense, or olibanum - for which this trade route of Oman was famous. Incidentally, olibanum was used not only as a fragrance in various forms to incense robes, rooms, palaces and temples, but also as a repellent for insects, including mosquitoes. Who has been and slept in these regions with the windows open (because it is hot and there is no air conditioning) knows what can happen at night. Well, you already know what ingredient we will find in this perfume as the base - OLIBANUM. In addition, we have other RESINS and MIRRA. If you like incense, I recommend it. The projection is good (it does not overwhelm and does not attack the environment), durability at least good - 6 hours. Oh ... from the similarities to other perfumes - I find in them something that reminds me of RBR-Embers, Norma Kamali-Incense and Ramon Bejar-Sanctum

#1202 in my "Tour de Fragrance" Got this s a decant. "Samharam" is the smell of the temple incense brazier, without the burnt smokiness they develop from generations of use (I've been in cathedrals and temples around the world, and never had occasion to ask if those braziers are ever cleaned, but I suspect not). I like this scent a lot, though if I were limited in what I can keep on the shelf I'd go for something more complex. The scents that a get a "love" from me, and it seems most people, are going for some endurance. Frankincense and myrrh endure. I tend to love scents with those notes, even better if they have both, as we have here. My first was probably Dior "Fahrenheit Absolu." As a novice to all this I bought several Amouage scents with that combo, but I've since learned you don't have to shell out the equivalent of a monthly car payment for this scent type. I have since acquired Asdaaf's great $20 cheapie "Madj Al Sultan", Beaufort London's reasonably priced "Terror & Magnificence" (I think I paid $75), and just got Hugo Boss "Bottled Absolu" ($98). There are a few incense and myrrh fragrances I've tried that are ahead of this on my "buy" list: Marc-Antoine Barrois "Ganymede", Stephane Humbert Lucas "Mortal Skin", Xerjoff "Groove Xcape." But, while I prioritize all of the above ahead of this scent, this is going on my "buy" list due to it's unique focus, which presents some interesting layering possibilities. Good luck and Good Hunting!

This is a gorgeous incense! Well balanced, bright, and the natural sweetness of the resins comes through beautifully. Longer lasting than many other incense-centric offerings, and stays clear and bright without breaking down into a more musky thing as the incense fades like many of them seem to do on me. Highly recommended to sample if you love incense! Side note- I love it on its own, but I made a magical discovery last night. I have a 3% Jasmine grandiflorum in jojoba that I occasionally use a moisturizer/scent out of the shower instead of wearing a perfume. I was wearing it yesterday evening and got a wild hair to spray Samharam on top of it- I could not believe how incredible they are together! I've not encountered a combination like that in any of the (over 1,000) perfumes I have sampled, and I am surprised, as it is just a stunning combination. I hope some talented perfumer out there reads this and gets inspired to make such a blend.

Incense frags aren't my favorite genre, so it takes a really special one to catch my attention. I tried a sample of this on a whim and immediately had to have a FB. Samharam has quickly become one of my favorite scents for fall and winter. This has what was missing for me when I tried Encens Suave. It's a perfectly blended combo of the listed notes, worth every penny. Longevity and sillage are excellent. One spray will last you all day; two if you're feelin' frisky; three will get you some attention. Even though it's mostly linear, Samharam has an amber-like drydown that reminds me of TF's Amber Absolute. I've mostly been wearing this in cool autumn temperatures, but today was unseasonably warm and the scent really opened up; it gave off this earthy vibe that I had never noticed before; I was on a long drive and couldn't stop taking whiffs of my shirt.

Pepper EXPLOSION This is what i got when i first sniffed this fragrance, PEPPER EXPLOSION, then bit by bit it calmed down and gone myrrah and extreme church incense with bits of salty bites. This is quite impressive, and i was surprised that people compare it to "Sanctum" by Ramon Bejar, at first i thought it's not, but later i kind of find something in common between "Samharam" & "Sanctum" which is the incense myrrh, then the pepper. It is resinous, and very churchy, very amusing to be honest, and now i kind of see it as "Sanctum" sister. After 20 minutes, "Samharam" is the twin sister of "Sanctum" True. Edit (22nd Aug 2017) The only different between "Samharam" & "Sanctum" is that Samharam is saltier than Sanctum as of the top note, then goes quite similar.

@johnny on my perfume eating skin I’m getting several hours of performance, with the first 90 minutes projecting. In my experience, this is extremely good. Samharam is above average in every way, including the scent. I think this is a gorgeous incense. Frankincense and myrrh dominate, I picked up pepper after I read other reviews here, but it’s not overwhelming. The only thing preventing me from acquiring it is the size limitation of 100ml, and nothing smaller. I would love it if Arte Profumi released Samharam in smaller sized bottles.

Myrrh and frankincense again but in this ratio not so straightforwardly churchy. Samharam is more like the smell of a tranquil temple, reflective and spiritual. The myrrh is very forward, almost a soliflore, though supported by benzoin. The overall accord is smoky, reminiscent of black treacle toffee or scorched gingerbread, black peppery, resinous and rich. This is heavy, quality stuff. Deep and beautiful. The olibanum set back, fractionally tempering the sweetness of the myrrh. An instant love.

This is the richest, deepest, most resinous, smokiest, most long lasting incense fragrance I have ever come across. Because it's a genre I love and enjoy, I've tried many. And a few years in, to this day there's few that can so much as hold a candle to Samharam. I have had or tried a few of the fragrances in the 'reminds me of' section and I can assure you that none of them came even close. They were incensy, and I did apprecciate them, yes. But Samharam made them feel like EdTs in comparison.

I'm trying this beauty right now thanks to a sample I received during the last Esxence. The percentage of fragrance here is high, you are not overwhelmed at all by alcohol when you spray this. And you smell incense from the beginning, but not the churchy kind, it's the kind of incense in grains burnt to purify, mixed with myrrhe. I find it fantastic! Sillage is moderate in the beginning and quite close to the skin after a while. Let's see how long it will last...

یاد یک عشق قدیمو (نرما کمالی اینسنس) اومدی تازه کردی ازین عطر حرارت میباره داغ و تند و تیز از امبر و رزین در کمال شکوه ----------- Scent & Quality: 10/10 Longevity: 10/10 Sillage: 9/10 Creativity & Uniqueness: 7/10 Affordability: 5/10 ----------- Overall: 8.2 +1 = 9.2/10

Absolutely classy, charming and intriguing, mysterious, sophisticated and Mystical...one of the most unique perfumes I have ever smelled!

it's good, elegant, and refined, just good nothing else to say that hasn't been said already about this fragrance.

Decided to finally purchase a new x 100ml bottle of Arte Profumi "Samharam." I went through a sizable decant back in 2019 when exploring multiple, incense-based fragrances. Even though I did not purchase a full bottle until now, I never forgot this fragrance. The perfume is still a love for me. Samharam is a beautiful perfume loaded with frankincense & myrrh, the true essence of liturgical incense. The perfume is a smoky, linear beauty. And unlike many fragrances in the incense category, there is not an overload of amber in the perfume's base. The opening is a peppery blast with an instantaneous dry down yielding lovely, church-y incense...it's frankincense and myrrh. And now that my pedestrian nose is a bit more perfume refined-smile-I can say Samharam definitely projects more myrrh versus frankincense. On skin with the passing of time, Samharam becomes creamier and warmer, deeper and softer. But the softness doesn't tamper with the core personality of the fragrance. Samharam is not an ethereal, or diaphanous fragrance. Yet, the perfume never feels thick, overwhelming, or cloying. And Samharam wears for an eternity. However, despite its veracity, Samharam is not a huge projector; the fragrance it wears close to its person. I like Samharam a lot. Yet, I prefer smelling Samharam in the air versus on my skin.

All about the joy of incense but also light and wearable. The scent has only three notes I can detect: olibanum, myrrh and benzoin. What distinguishes this one is that it’s not heavily concentrated which makes it a bit easier to reach for compared to some other incensy heavyweights like say Unum. The slight masculine leaning scent has moderate projection and good longevity. Satisfy your cleansing desires without feeling like a church crypt. Enjoy!

Samharam is super incensey! Imagine sitting in the very front row in an old church during a mass. The thick resinous incense. tons of myrrh and smokey. deep and rich. another scent I immediately remember by sniffing this one was Gallivant's Naples. When Naples is like sitting on a beach side bench nearby a church, Samharam is being inside the church.

Warmer, thicker and more baroque than CDG Avignon, less sweet and thick than Full Incense by Montale. To my nose it's perfectly balanced, perfectly unisex. You can tell high quality ingredients were used to make this. The only reason reason this is a like instead of a love is its price. I wish 50ml bottles were available, would definitely buy one.

Interesting because the first thing I smell is pepper? Then myrrh benzoin a little bit of incense. Does not project as loudly as I thought it would. Notes are straightforward, if you like those you’ll like this. Myrrh is pretty smooth. Smells ancient. This is a scent that has some historicity.

This reminds me of City on Fire by Imaginary Authors but with a sweeter more toned down smokiness. I do love the smell but I would rather experience the scent on my favorite guy than on myself. But this house makes wonderful and seductive scents.🥰❤️🔥 My opinion ✅

I love it as it smells like Norma Kamali Incense but much lighter/airier which would be a great summer alternative.

Straight resins, earthy and woody, almost leathery or hay-like -- something about it reminds me of a horse barn. It is very strong -- one tentative spray from a sample was enough to radiate off me for hours.

It smells sour, leathery, and oudy. I smell an unlisted elemi note. It's not the incensed myrrh I was expecting. -

Samharam shares a few similarities with Armani Bois D'Encens and certainly leans in this direction. However, it is not as dry, and is sweeter. Although I wasn't surprised by Samharam, it's certainly leans more towards the 'like' end of the broad spectrum of incense perfumes I've tried. Really good performance. Worth a try if you enjoy labdanum-type incense, rather than frankincense.

This is an excellent incense fragrance. Very full bodied and all wintery. It's very strong with great sillage. Turns out I like my incense toned down and mixed with more notes, but if you feel the opposite, I don't think you can go wrong with this fragrance. High quality.

woody balsamic, dry spice, a bag of damp wood chips with a touch of amber 3 sprays medium projection For several hours

I've been searching for this all my life. Pure high quality incense. I love it on its own but it layers superbly too.

The incense is so concentrated all I smell is freshly hewn sawdust from a 2x4

Hi fragheads, how does this perform? longevity? sillage?