Anubis

Given that Lizzy (the nose behind this creation) has kept the any narrative details of her Anubis as mysterious as the pyramids themselves, we're left to our own highly imaginative devices. And, judging by the name, I'd say the Egyptians, those undisputed masters of decorating death, provided ample inspiration. So, what should you expect? Picture an extravagantly adorned funerary chamber, complete with freshly embalmed mummies and, for good measure, a few wafts of expensive incense. Surprisingly, though, this isn't some deep, dark, and brooding concoction. Anubis kicks off with a shimmering, almost effervescent resinous amber, given a gentle tinge of sweetness by an ever-so-slightly syrupy immortelle flower. A few extra balmy tendencies round out this rather opulent beginning, making it feel less like a crypt and more like a sun-drenched tomb opening. About half an hour in, as Anubis settles down, a non-animalic leather starts to emerge, presenting itself more as a soft, luxurious suede (a.k.a. saffron, based accord). You'll also catch a whisper of something herbaceous, almost like a freshly cut hay bale. Don't expect this leather to dominate the scene; instead, it acts as a sophisticated bridge to the next act. Fast forward a couple of hours, and a very dry sandalwood takes center stage, still accompanied by a ghost of that earlier herbaceousness. Overall, I'm quite impressed with the opening – it’s bright, it’s opulent, and it's quite unique. I'm generally not one for heavy ambers, but here, Anubis cleverly uses a chypre-esque floral touch to temper its resinous heft, making it surprisingly palatable (to me). Aside from perhaps the first fifteen minutes, I wouldn't call Anubis a particularly challenging wear. Once it dries down, it morphs into an intimate skin scent that will cling to you for a good long while. Just a final tip: Unless your personal style involves being wrapped head-to-toe in mummy parchment, I'd strongly advise against spraying this on clothes. You've been warned.

"Dark and enigmatic... beauty of two worlds in a perfume." Anubis is a 2014 fragrance from British niche fragrance house Papillon Artisan Perfumes by Liz Moores. This is yet another blind purchase for me, and the latest addition to my fragrance collection. I made a gamble by buying this without even trying once after understanding how my skin works, and it is certainly without any regrets. Anubis is the name of a legendary Egyptian god, and indeed the fragrance does invoke an image of the Egyptian deserts. On my skin, it opens with an intense notes of rich suede and a resinous combo of myrrh and olibanum (frankincense). The marriage of the trio conjures the scent that is a cross between a luxury leather bag and enigmatic incense smoke. The myrrh-olibanum is an intriguing fusion that reminds me of the scent of a Middle Eastern district, one with perfume oils and hookah, and a Christian church. Underneath the smoky leather veil lies the very subtle scent of lotus and jasmine, of which I have to be patient in order to notice it. My skin is partial towards heavy scents, and Anubis is a testament of it. It accentuates fragrances that has notes of leather and resins in particular, but it does drown floral notes a little. This fragrance is best enjoyed in cold climate (I imagine it to be beautiful in winter) or at least in cool environments. What I am surprised is, despite being heavy, the longevity and sillage is moderate. I was expecting this fragrance to be a powerhouse, but noticing how it stays close to the skin makes it very wearable to be worn daily. Even if one sprayed on himself/herself several times, it doesn't stand out as much as I thought (either that, or my skin just consumes fragrances). Although it is a unisex fragrance, I think it would appeal to the men more than the women (although there will be exceptions). It's dark, enigmatic and smoky as hell, and one has to be mentally prepared in order to pull this one off!

When I first tried Anubis, years ago, it was the first dark Oriental I’d ever smelled, so I didn’t have as much context as I do now. It’s a deep brown scent, ambered but not truly sweet, with some smoky nuances – and at the time I thought of myself as an amber-phobe, so it was a revelation. But there are lots of dark brown, not-too-sweet resinous scents out there fitting that description. What makes Anubis distinctive? It has a touch of bitter brightness from the orange peel; and its smoky facet is unusual, almost funky or damp-smelling, which is probably the pink lotus. Here that doesn’t refer to a fantasy note inspired by the lotus flower, but an actual extract from the plant’s root, which has a muddy, dense smell similar to oakmoss. Anubis is really a restrained, balanced scent. It’s got dark labdanum, but not as chewy or hefty as O Hira; it’s got some leather, but I wouldn’t outright call it a leather scent. The smoky incense and funky lotus are probably the dominant aspects, at least for me this time. The jasmine is definitely an accent, not the main event – it’s easy to miss altogether – but it creates a lovely, delicately shining interlude before the darkness takes over for good. There’s also an animalic phase when the castoreum takes center stage – dark-brown, satisfyingly furry, blending smoothly with the resin and smoke. The overall effect is a little somber, definitely dark and brooding, with subtle glints of brightness and surprising nuances along the way. It might actually be best to think of Anubis as a dark *incense* scent with other stuff balancing it, than a leather or amber “dark Oriental” where it’ll feel gloomy and severe next to richer fare. Anubis takes somber, smoky frankincense, which can often be too harsh for my taste, and blends it smoothly with similarly dark-toned adjacent scents until it becomes far more refined and wearable. Here, the God of the Dead is a gentleman.

Ordered a sample of Anubis by Papillon because it sounded good (I enjoy incense, leather and tobacco scents) and because not everyone is wearing it. Took a whiff from the sample vial and thought I’d definitely NOT be enjoying this. I did my usual test of a spritz on chest, neck and both wrists. And now, I am in LOVE! Incense. Leather. Tobacco. OMG! On my skin, this started out a very strong smoky delicious incense and then only got better. Some reviews I’ve read said there’s a hint of gasoline, and I can detect that at the heart, but it quickly gives way to jasmine to my nose. On me, the base settles into a very deep smoky, leathery incense with just a hint of powder, and the density of all that dark (dark in a mysterious, not evil kind of way) gets perfectly tempered with the sweetness of jasmine. There is enough leather and smoke in this to keep it masculine despite the jasmine IMHO. This is one of those that kept shifting on my skin, and I loved the journey from start to finish. I had to make myself stop sniffing myself! I was surprised that the sillage was fairly soft on this one, I could tell it was on me, but didn’t leave much of a scent trail according to my friends, and wish it projected just a bit more. Longevity isn’t bad, I’m getting about 6 hours of scent about a foot from my skin, then a soft skin scent after that, and on me near the end it becomes more powdery before vanishing completely. This has become a top 10 favorite in the incense/leather category for me. I would only wear this in the winter as it would be too cloying in heat I think, but also would wear it to the office since it stays fairly close to my skin. I personally experience this more on the masculine than feminine side, but can see its unisex value. I would use this for day or evening wear. This is definitely not inexpensive, so a sample first over a blind buy may be wise. As always, your results may vary!

A wonderfully dense and rewarding perfume of gasoline-tinged jasmine, animalic leathers and smoky resins. Truly one of a kind and perfectly attuned to the theme of Anubis. This perfume clearly falls into the broad category of a westernized nod to Egyptian culture, particularly the SHL 777/Tribute Attar school of thought running through the 2000s and into the 2010s with things like Guerlain’s Songe(which adorns the “smells like” section up above). This one however has a few big tricks up it’s sleeve that the others miss: namely an absolutely devastating earthy pink lotus absolute, a truly sweet and dirty castoreum and so much natural jasmine I’m surprised this one is IFRA compliant(is it still compliant? My nearly empty bottle is first batch and I have no idea if Ms. Moores has been forced to reform). Saffron, Jasmine and Myrhh seem to be the only common components between Songe and Anubis... No Oud here, no nutmeg, no cumin tinge, and the lightly present Immortelle is known as “curry flower” and not “cumin flower”... for better or for worse, Anubis is jammed with naturals, giving the thick liquid a prismatic, ever-changing quality of humid chewiness, compared to the primarily synthetic(and brilliant) fixed-in-place quality of Songe. It seems both Guerlain’s Thierry Wasser and Papillon’s Liz Moore were interested in this classic Egyptian mummification recipe around the same time(indeed, Ms. Moores started her business after handing out samples of this perfume years before the first bottle’s release date... marking Songe and Anubis as being composed with serious synchronicity). But we need not speculate at Liz Moores influence as she has been very open about her love of Homage Attar by Amouage. Still this is a case of the a perfumer transcending her influences and handing in a true masterpiece.