Byzance

Rochas byzance So I have the vintage and the 2019 remake. They are NOTHING alike. I’m not talking just typical failed reformulation whatever, no. These are two COMPLETELY different scents, they have NOTHING to do with eachother. The vintage is a spicy aldehydic carnation that to me smells of a very specific type of incense that I can not currently recall, but it makes me think of ancient places, tombs, pharaohs, old Byzantine (appropriately lol) churches, and even curiosity shops, but the nice ones with real old curiosities, not your run-of-the-mill headshop filled with cheap trinkets that are probably made in China. It is DIVINE. The new one, however, smells like your typical 2000s/early 2010s vanilla-heliotrope-ginger sweet but “young” (but not childish or teen-like) a la Hugo Boss Deep Red, Dsquared2 want, Dior Poison Girl Unexpected, etc. Except it’s even sweeter and much thinner and cheaper smelling than and not nearly as good as any of those, not that I’d consider any of those to be “expensive” smelling in the first place. It smells much more like an impression of vanilla, heliotrope, and almond, without actually using ANY of those real notes and just using the cheapest aromachemicals around to vaguely approximate the smell of them, hence the impression of ginger without an actual ginger note, or without smelling solidly of ginger. I’ve noticed that can be quite a good tell-tale sign of really cheap aromachemicals used in place of vanilla-they have this very slightly tingly almost ginger-like scent but it *doesn’t* smell like real solid ginger but rather like a vague impression of ginger. I don’t think this is even always intentional as I smell this “gingery” edge in a lot of really cheap sweet vanilla based scents, especially from the 2000s and early 2010s. 2019 Byzance is clearly another victim/result of that. No wonder a 2oz bottle can be had BNIB/SIB for $20. Believe me it is no steal, you’re getting exactly your moneys worth. In fact, most of the money must be going towards the bottle, which for the price is very pretty. But even with THAT said, the vintage bottle is MUCH more beautiful! The new bottle even LOOKS cheap compared to the vintage bottle, which is gorgeous and looks like a museum artifact. It feels like a gorgeous glass antique, which I suppose now it actually is too lol! Whether you are new to Byzance, or true to Byzance, do NOT even BOTHER with the 2019 version!! I’m a collector so I figured I wanted both for collections sake anyway, but it’s honestly such a tragedy (especially after smelling the vintage, but even before that it wasn’t something I’d ever wear and would’ve/will served strictly as a decorative piece in my collection lol) that even though I only paid a measly $21 for it, and I can’t even think of another perfume that can be had for that price that I even want, I wish I’d put that $21 towards the purchase of another more expensive perfume than wasting it on this. But the VINTAGE Byzance, I am THRILLED to have in my collection. It is utterly GORGEOUS, and not just the bottle but the scent too! Seriously. It is STUNNING. And I’m not even an incense-freak nor a massive aldehyde fan. I like incense, love it irl, but can be picky about it in perfumes, especially as a central note/accord. As for aldehydes, take that and double it-I love a good aldehyde but am even more picky about them than I am about incense. So by no means is any incense-aldehyde a guaranteed like for me, even if I can appreciate as a perfume otherwise. But this is both something I can appreciate as a perfume/work or art AND that just plain smells GREAT. It’s one of those perfumes that has me huffing my wrist repeatedly, it’s addictive and intoxicating and I just can’t get enough! It also reminds me a bit of Catholic Church incense, not a literal interpretation but the nod is definitely there. I went to a Polish Catholic Church (in America) so maybe the type of incense they used was different than your typical western Catholic Church, because while this certainly does NOT smell like your typical “Catholic church incense” perfumes such as CdG Avignon, it totally does remind me of my church that I attended as a child. Sorry this is sort of a double review for both, but it felt important and also, kind of impossible NOT to review one without contrasting with the other, especially since I have both side by side so I’m in a perfect position to compare the two. But if you are thinking about going with the 2019 to save a buck, just don’t, ESPECIALLY if you’re familiar with the smell of the vintage trust me you will be SO DISAPPOINTED they’re not even in the same genre! Sad they’re clearly just trying to ride the Byzance name and bottle and its popularity because they clearly did not even TRY to make the 2019 version an actual reformulation. It’s not even a SEMBLANCE of a reformulation. Even the WORST reformulation (that is an actual reformulation attempt and not just a blatant rip off of the name like this) is a better reformulation than this. 2019 “Byzance” could’ve and should’ve been a completely different perfume under a different name if it had to be released at all (though I suspect it never would’ve been if not for the Byzance name because this juice is clearly NOT an attempt at any sort of actual composition but rather just total worthless filler that they created quickly and cheaply so that they could sell the CONCEPT aka name). But even if you’ve NEVER smelled the vintage, still don’t get the 2019. Because even aside from the COMPLETE lack of ANY sort of resemblance to the vintage/original, the 2019 version is also just a bad scent in its own right. Cheap, generic, and THIN-like it doesn’t have any real notes, just a dirty dishwater blend of the CHEAPEST aromachemicals there are (we’re talking like cheap Walmart/dollar store body spray level) that are then drowned in some sickeningly sweet aroma chemical that ALSO doesn’t smell/feel like REAL sugar, but rather like a nasty chemical artificial sweetener that is simultaneously TOO sweet and lacks the depth of real sugar making it feel too sweet and not sweet enough at the same time. I don’t like to leave scathing reviews, especially since most scents I dislike are down to simple personal preference, but in this case the 2019 Byzance is actually BAD. Not just not to my taste. It’s simply bad, very poor in quality. I actually love vanilla and almond and heliotrope, a LOT! Many of my favorite scents contain these. In fact, I’d say these are some of my all time favorite notes, especially almond. If the scent was well done, I could’ve and would’ve definitely enjoyed it as a scent in its own right, even if I considered it a terrible reformulation, or NOT a reformulation at all. But that’s exactly the point here-it’s NOT well done, it’s just as bad of a scent in its own right as it is a reformulation. But since I don’t want to end this review on a negative note; you simply MUST try the original/vintage Byzance! This stuff is MAGICAL. A true magic potion! And with a bottle to match! The name, the scent, everything fits PERFECTLY. This is one of those perfumes that is not a mere perfume but an *experience*. This is one of those perfumes that has the power to whisk and transport you away to an ancient Byzantine palace (back in its actual time too!) every time you pick up the bottle and/or sniff or catch a whiff of the juice. Wow wow wow! And it looks like a stunning ancient artifact on my perfume table! Although I bought a rather sizable bottle, this is a perfume I will DEFINITELY be obtaining backups of-MANY of them! And it will be a lot of fun as the vintage Byzance has been sold in many different bottles over the years, all beautiful, so it will be great fun to collect different ones! I can’t believe I waited this many years to try it, and, despite the fact that it actually *does* get a decent bit of hype on here at least, I can’t believe this doesn’t get a lot MORE hype! I mean imo this is every bit as classic and incredible and magical and timeless as vintage YSL Opium, which is another STUNNER. But dare I say I think I actually might like this one even a tad bit *more*? And folks I ADORE vintage Opium!!! This is honestly one of the best vintages I’ve ever smelled. THANK GOD I decided to order both versions at the same time as opposed to getting the 2019 first because had I made the mistake of getting the 2019 first, I fear it would’ve turned me off of getting the vintage for many more years, possibly even forever, and what a crying SHAME that would’ve been. Never judge a vintage by its reform! ;) And go get the vintage, you won’t be sorry :)

Byzance Wow! I bought this is a lot on eBay and I love the bottle itself. It looks like some ancient magic oil that belongs on an altar, anointing statues of the Old Gods. Someone here said it made her feel like a High Priestess anointing herself whenever she puts it on and I can’t agree more! I have a vintage bottle with the delicate pink string. Since I only bought the lot for the Opium and the Magie Noire, I had no idea what to expect from Byzance since I had never heard of it. It starts off feminine and dries down to a masculine white musk. I’d say it’s a unisex perfume for a man who can pull off the initial florals and wait for the dry down. When it first hits, I think of the word “White” for some reason. Some people on here compare it to a marble statue. I guess, but it wafts and swoops in a way that statues DON’T. It’s more like white incense. There’s something dry about it, like a white sand desert. Every flower under the sun seems to be present in its ingredients list. But the spices come in quickly underneath them, undercutting them as if the flowers were mere bystanders and beside the point. I know it’s called Byzance and people are likening it to pristine white churches of the Byzantine era, but honestly, no one remembers the ancient world further back than that. Or maybe ancient Egypt. The blue and gold bottle and the strong scent of incense makes me think of ancient Babylon instead. Its huge blue and gold Ishtar gate, specifically. There’s supposedly cedar, which I haven’t encountered yet, but it certainly would call to mind the middle east. Babylon stretched all the way to present-day Lebanon, so that makes sense. Of course, the Byzantine empire at its height also encompassed that region, so...potatoe potato. I still prefer imagining myself passing through the Ishtar gate when I smell it. This scent has really held up over the years in this vintage bottle. Even if some notes have deteriorated over the years from the original scent, it’s still imminently wearable today. It’s not heavy or brocade in the way some ambers are. It’s light and bright and has an uplift at the end. Maybe that’s the mandarin orange. This is definitely someone’s Signature Scent. Not mine, but someone’s! Some people are saying it’s cold. I don’t get that AT ALL. It smells warm to me, hot even, like fire. White Opulence is all I can think of. I love it, but beware! You CAN overdo it, easily! It can be overpowering if you do.

So, I had to investigate the possibility of a return of Byzance after reading the two posts below mine by Ioanna Touliatou and wyvfonseca claiming to have seen/obtained Byzance at two non-U.S. sites. News Parfum seems to be owned and operated by the same company that is in charge of origines-parfums. Both sites have the same/similar inaccuracies in their naming conventions and images for their purported "Rochas" fragrances (and for others I glanced at as well - do your homework before you buy much here because some of it seems okay and some is just plain old not right) and I am sad to say neither is selling a new Byzance - although they both use the name or a version of it to perhaps encourage you to think they are (or maybe they just don't know better) The one shows their fragrance lablelled "Byzantium" which is interesting as of course as well as Byzance Rochas briefly had a Byzantine - but there is no Rochas Byzantium anywhere else, including the official Rochas site, in the world. Proctor and Gamble sold Rochas in 2012 and who owns the majority of the fragrance names now I don't know. I do know that Origines' Byzantium/Byzance isn't trying hard to pretend to have any resemblance to Byzance at all - the notes given are Head: Cardamom, Cedar, Heart: Jasmine, Rose, Base: Vanilla, Sandalwood, White Musk. No spice, carnation,tuberose, aldehydes, etc Cedar? Nah. News Parfums, which lists it as Byzantium but refers to it on it's page mostly as Byzance, is sort of honest in their description where they say flat out Byzance no longer exists and they can't sell it, but the honesty ends there as they have a Madame Rochas styled blue bottle of something for sale. I hope that whatever fragrance is in those bottles is pleasant, so buyers get something for the not miniscule price tag. If you're really seeking Rochas Byzance though, these two sites are not the places to go. You'll only find disappointment. =(

To me there are no words to say how astonishingly beautiful this perfume is. For many years it was my absolute favourite. The only thing is that, although I think the later formulation still deserves that comment, the quality of the perfume was downgraded. It was much more sophisticated before, absolutely divine. The only negative point was that for me as the wearer it was too feeble. Nevertheless, the other people kept smelling it even at a distance. The reformulation is stronger, but the scent is not so special. It is sweeter and more common. I do not like it nearly as much. It was more metalic before, more out of the world of common experiences, something people would identify straightaway as a very good perfume. The first thing I like about it is the aldehyds soapiness, really well tempered by the other notes, because it is not overwhelming as in other aldehydic perfumes, it is sharper but in a very subtle metalic way. Although I do like strong perfumes, the subtlety of this one, because the projection was great nevertheless, is another quality I do appreciate about Byzance. And I like everything else about this perfume, including the bottle and the colour of the perfume. The original bottle produced colour effects due to the colour of the perfume, changing colour depending on the angle you looked through. It is a big loss this one to have been discontinued. Thank God I stockpiled several bottles before that happened and still have several bottles. Because though I think the original was superior, I admire very much the reformulation as well. To me Rochas had the most beautiful perfume collection in the world: Byzance, the original Lumiére, Mystére, the original Femme and Madame Rochas.

I simply adore this fragrance. It's as full of mystique as it is of rich sensuality. It's creamy, romantic, decadent, incensey, deep, and fascinatingly mysterious. Like the glorious Byzantium from antiquity, Byzance has the characteristics of a melting pot, it embodies the fusion of different cultures, the fusion of Europe and Asia, of the Mediterranean and the Black Sea, too, and in the same ambiguous way it features and blends notes that are distinctive of different olfactory groups (is Byzance really a Chypre floral, or rather a spicy oriental, or even an aromatic scent, as some reviewers have stated below?). Byzance and its sister fragrance Byzantine share the same solemnly beautiful bottle. If Byzance's intensely cobalt-blue bottle reminds us of the mysteries of night, Byzantine's golden bottle could evoke the luminosity of the sunny Bosphorus and the golden mosaics on the walls of Byzantine churches. Indeed, both border on mystic bliss for me, and above all Byzance. All the enigmas from the Orient and its ancient civilizations seem to emanate from its blue bottle. The inscrutable secrets of time let themselves be glimpsed for a second the moment we apply this superb fragrance to our pulse points. Ancient, yes. Enjoying Byzance is now a matter of archaeology and many of us will mourn its absence forever. Being a lover of archaeology myself, I'm treasuring my only remaining bottle as if it was a Byzantine balsamarium! Why did Rochas have to discontinue this enthralling creation, and keep launching offensively shallow fruity scents like the new Muse? It's a shame that Procter & Gamble show such little sensitivity to the art of perfumery!

My mother used to wear this and I loved it on her. She bought me 100 ml a bottle in the 1990's and I still have less than half a bottle left tucked away in my "perfume storage vault" (fancy expression for cupboard). I must add that I love the bold, blue bottle - it represents the 80's well! What ever happened to unusual fragrances? There seems to be a massive surge in gourmande fragrances for women, whilst not being a bad thing at all (as I love MANY a gourmande), there's just so many sweet girly girl fragrances out there! Byzance is most definitely NOT a girly girl scent. This is a spicy, woody scent that is crisp, dry and incredibly powerful! Green upon opening, with citrus overtones and spice, it comes across a little astringent and medicinal. Rose and jamsine linger for a short time whilst sandalwood, amber and glorious and steadfast cedar remain your companion for the rest of this exotic journey. The spice remains throughout, which is wonderful! There is a sweetness here, but it's tamed by the spices and wood. I also found that this fragrance is long lived on my skin and the silage was quite powerful too. I so wish this was still in production! Rochas peoples, if you're reading this, I haven't tried your new fragrances, but PLEASE think about bringing back some of your older classics as they are just so unusual and intriguing.

I finally acquired both a mini EDP and a full bottle EDT of this vintage beauty. Despite the notes, every thing about the scent calls to mind resins and church incense to me. I know the flowers are there, but I can't, nor want to, break this down. It is so well blended that it can be only one thing, and that thing is the Byzantine opulence of Byzance. I can visualize myself walking into an ancient church, full of glittering icons and mosaics, and redolent with the smell of candle wax and incense. So while some of you can say this is all about the tuberose, or aldehydes, or whatever else is thrown into this mystical potion, but to me, it is it's own smell, and there is nothing else like it. ========== Purchased a 2/3 full tester of EDP on Ebay. This commands a lot of money, especially for full bottles, so I consider myself lucky to have found this used tester for a more affordable price. Each and every time I wear this - whether EDT or EDP - I am blown away. There are a few fragrances that make me feel that way, but this is special. There is nothing quite like it! Keep in mind that the newest version bears no resemblance to the original. I can't comment on it as I haven't tried it, but the notes are completely different.

I've reviewed this before. Vintage Byzance resides in the pantheon of great fragrances from the late 80s that were part of my coming of age. So it's not necessary to again assert how utterly beguiling and mysterious I feel when I wear it. I am writing this time because I realized something today. I have bottles of both vintage EDP and EDT. If you've ever tried to hunt down a bottle of the EDP (and it's amazing bottle) you know how costly it can be to get your hands on one. The EDT is more accessible, and I realized today that I actually prefer it to the EDP!! My point is that if this was once a great love of yours, you may find that the less expensive EDT will work better for you than the EDP. Just a public service announcement! PS - my two cents on Byzance/Ysatis. I have both (Ysatis is also vintage) and wore both at the same time of my life. I also love both, basically for the same reason - they conjure up images of the East and all the mysteries an active imagination can conceive. But Byzance edges out Ysatis in my book. It's a very personal thing, but Byzance touches my soul on a more profound level. It makes me feel like a High Priestess anointed with sacred oils!!

1987 seemed to be the apex of the potent, concentrated floral ambers that were in demand, and Byzance has been argued to be the high water mark of this trend. Starting with a flurry of aldehydes, mandarin and spices, Byzance EDT invites its wearer to enter its dark and effervescent interior from which emerges all manner of splashy, somewhat soapy florals. This is where the fun really happens—dripping wet, oozing tuberose and ylang-ylang dominant among the flowers. However, this is no foghorn; Byzance flirts but doesn't come on too strong. The second half of its development is its own flavor of intrigue, because this is where Byzance really starts to feel like incense to my nose: imagine, if you will, a heliotrope incense, with lingering traces of tuberose. It is ensconced in a purple snuffed candle musk, laden with a warm wood powder, swirling with sweet amber sensuality. Byzance is opulence with a capital O, a raspy rapscallion of a fragrance with a devotional side, a velvet cloak, an amethyst-hued dazzler. I agree with Tania Sanchez that it is also fantastic masculine. My EDP mini wears more dense, almost syrupy, but just as impressive.

Byzance... well the name itself evokes luxury, silk, plum velvet & golden trimmings, lavish baths, people chilling out in such a lounge and “dolce far niente”...plus a little skankiness :o). I am referring to the original fragrance, as I never tried the reformulation. I used to love this fragrance in the late Eighties, beginning of Nineties. I always found it a bit over the top, but loved it anyway (I reckon, I was sniffing it a lot but did not wear as it was a bit ”strong” and I knew people around me disliked it). I also had the bottle because of the bottle itself...that deep blue with that big golden coin in the middle was so elegant... I loved it. The fragrance itself is not “airy” nor “pretty” it requires a self-confident woman and the proper occasion. This is not a juice you would wear in the office or in another public occasion if your aim weren't that of clearing the room :o) It is loud. Can be easily overdone. Heavy on berries and on vanilla, loaded on the jasmine and on the Turkish rose. Drydown is spicy and sensual. It is warm (wear it in winter time) and very very feminine. It was a little masterpiece. __________

Byzance is a perfume made in HEAVEN . One of the ( few ) most magnificent fragrances I have ever smelled in all my life and it is the one I would keep if I had to renounce every other bottle . The parfum concentration is a concerto composed of three different parts , one more beautiful than the other one . Its drydown is just ... sweety wonderful ! It is so rich that it is difficult to define it . Here it is considered a Chypre floral but it is deliciously spicy and ambery sweet , slightly powdery , it is an "everything" which gives birth to such beautiful melodies . I am in love with Byzance :-) It makes me think of a mosaique whose numerous tiny pieces used with great skill turn into a perfectly composed image ... yes , a Byzantine mosaique ! After smelling this you can throw away 95% of the newborn fragrances without regrets and only really care of vintage perfumes . If I had to paint a silk dress dedicated to Byzance , it would remember Klee and Klimt paintings , gold swirls and ( cobalt :-) blue tiny details .

I don't know why Byzance has been discontinued. It's been my signature perfume for 20 years. I miss it. I miss the gentleness and strength...I miss the familiarity of an old friend. Few things in my life are constant....but Byzance has been. As I look on as my last bottle dwindles...I come to the realisation I must move on. Yet it's a great perfume. Arabian nights....or my horse jumping that higher fence. The feeling of victory when I approach a finish line.... and you finally wipe out the sweat from your forehead....the smell of an old friend invading your senses....as your wrist approaches your face. That's what Byzance has meant. I do hope it comes back. If it doesn't....well that's life. That's what happens....Life changes and moves on. As I search for another friend...I say goodbye to my old one. And will always remember fondly this perfume. My husband's reaction? To try and look for another one that smelled similar by looking for its chemical composition online....my bloke liked it too!

I am an Istanbulite born and raised. This indeed is "Istanbul in a bottle" as one gentle member put so well. How else can I describe the hue of the sky as it gets ready for the morning prayer over the Bosphorus than pointing at Byzance’s beautiful bottle... The warm sensation that wraps you up when you breathe in the unmistakable scent of Istanbul, is captured in this concoction with all its spices and florals. I’m in my early 30’s now and I used to wear this as a 16 year old. Although I loved it, I moved on to other fragrances in time, I’ve almost thought of Byzance as something I’ve outgrown. And they went and decided to discontinue it. Now that I can find the EDP or the perfume with incredible difficulty, I am ready to mourn the loss of yet another favorite. Maybe Long Lost Perfumes will come out with an original formula Byzance one day, but what about that beautiful bottle? Why haven’t I saved at least an empty bottle of this lovely fragrance which actually was my carefree young self.

Byzance feels like an Odalisque, dressed in fine silks of vibrant colours, draped over a lounge. Just like those ones in a Henri Matisse painting. Opulent. Ravishing. Exquisite. I am so glad I tried this again! Many years ago, I used to spray Byzance on in department stores and sniff dreamily, but I never got around to owing it. Recently though, that striking blue flacon pulled me in (I could get lost in that gorgeous bottle, but that's another matter), so I spritzed some EDT on. A harsh soapiness at first. Spicy. A blend of bergamot, orange flower, jasmine and rose to my nose, but it's not obvious as any of those things. Also reminds me a little of Boucheron’s beginnings too, in its initial stage. But then, like Boucheron, Byzance blossoms into something beautiful...as sandalwood, amber, vanilla and musk come to the fore and it blooms into a sultry haze of softly spiced, deep golden warmth and musky joy. And surprisingly, not heavy at all. I feel so good wearing this. Simply stunning.

I remember this fragrance well because it was my best friend’s signature fragrance in the late 80s. I always liked it but would never wear it because it was her scent. She’s since moved on to other fragrances so I guess I could wear it now without upsetting her. She might even think it’s nice smelling her old fragrance again. Reading through the reviews I was disappointed to hear that it was discontinued, but when I looked at the where it’s sold section of this page found that they are selling the new formulation on frangrancenet. It’s not in the old bottle anymore but in the Madame Rochas style bottle (tall cylindric shape). Reading the reviews from purchasing customers on that site doesn’t seem to indicate it is very different from the original formula. Some reviewers claim they have been using the fragrance for years and still love it. It might be something to check out. I would love to try the new formulation to see if it smells as I remember. It would be fabulous if it did.

Byzance perfectly balances the creamy and vegetal facets of tuberose. Yes, this is a “soapy” fragrance but only in the best possible sense, like emerging from an enormously satisfying shower. Yes, it’s also an 80s powerhouse fragrance, but in true Rochas style it avoids discordance or heaviness by marrying the floral aldehyde and woody aldehyde genres of the preceding several decades with just a hint of spice, foreshadowing scores of florientals to come. To my nose this is not dated at all, but rather eludes categorization, feeling both timeless and unisex. To me this scent exudes a sense of calm confidence, and though it is a clean interpretation of tuberose it avoids feeling prudish or austere. As far as notes go, I mainly get a sprinkling of soapy aldehydes gilding a cloud of tuberose and heliotrope, supported by creamy sandalwood and vanilla. But the rest of the listed notes emerge from time to time and lend complexity without distracting from the stars of the show.

I stumbled on to this page after investigating another fume and hitting the Reminds Me Of button. Hit me with an aching nostalgia for the complex powerhouse perfumes I wore in my 20s -Ysatis, Amarige, Poison, Loulou, and... Byzance! Oh such heady days! I can almost smell them now! Byzance was a favorite for sure. I didn't care about identifying or even knowing the different notes. I didn't know that I had a preference for white floral Orientals or woods or spices. I only new and cared that they smelled delicious and that I felt sexy and sophisticated wearing them. I need them all again in their vintage form. I refuse to even consider reformulations, especially if they are as truly awful as the reformulated abomination calling itself Poison these days! I know this should be specifically about Byzance. It's just that all of those scents transport me back in time. I love them all!!

Review for the EDT, vintage with pink ribbon on the neck. Best tuberose I've tried. Tuberose can be a dud for me. But this is great. Reminds me of Elizabeth Taylor Passion minus the civet. The aldehydes in the opening were very high-pitched, reminding me a lot of Rochas Lumiere. But that "hairspray" note did quickly transition to a musky tuberose with clove weaving in and out. Small test of two sprays was plenty intense. I could see this being headache and nausea inducing if not applied sparingly. Overall a like! Could become a love. Update: this tests much better for me in the cool weather. Definitely a fall/winter perfume. I'm quite pleased to have my vintage bottle, might buy the modern version so I can spray to my heart's content and save the special juice for special times. (edit to add, modern is nothing like this, except in mood--rich and femme. Different notes!)

This was one of my staples back in the late 80s early 90s. Feeling nostalgic I found a vintage on eBay and here she is again in all her glory. It never was the same kind of 80s beast like Lou Lou or Poison, Byzance is much more restrained and dry in comparison - but she is still a rich, velvety, incensy 1001 Nights, stars in the desert sky, black kohl eyeliner, lapis lazuli gold specs glimmering in the night kind of a creation. There is no one note dominating here, there is some sweetness but nothing gourmandy - more soft spices and incense. There is a level of sophistication and allure instead of a direct come on, its seductive in an indirect way, with a leaning to mystery and mysticism. Yes I still like it very much. Not tested the reissue so unsure how compares but if you find the vintage, get it.

This did not smell good at all upon first spritzing, I thought my bottle had turned-a vintage EDT. Scrubbing was not an option, I was on my way out the door & didn't have time. Byzance settled down and smells lovely, a creamy and rich combination of subtle spices, white florals and roses, which dry down into a resinous delight of amber, vanilla and sandalwood. It's kind of light and dark, with the spice, citrus & floral at the beginning, and the deep and richness of the dry down. Could have been the basil that was turning me off in the top notes, I usually do not like that smell, unless it's in the kitchen. I don't know, something smelled unpleasant in the beginning. I'm so glad I gave this a chance and didn't scrub. A keeper.

This perfume brings back my childhood! I don't have a bottle however my mum does, and I remember she wore this all the time when I was younger. I would sometimes even sneak a spray of it because I loved it so much! It very spicy but does have a nice sweet tone to it. In a way it's almost like a "feminine cologne". Definitely not for the "girly" perfume lovers, however more for women who are going for a more sophisticated and sexy personality. Not something i'd personally wear since I do fall in that "girly" category, however I do enjoy smelling this on other people, absolute classic! I rate this a 7/10, bottle is a bit ordinary (because it's an 80's perfume duh), however in a way I love it since it does bring up my childhood.

Fruity floral lovers will not be interested in this one. This fragrance is one of my absolute favorites. A contradiction...warm and cool at the same time, creamy, almost waxy feeling to it, with intermittent bites of something sharp (in a good way), spicy, smooth, subtle but not a wall flower by any means. It says Ta Da! I am here! but not in an overwhemlming 80's way. Excellent year round, but probably best in summer. Lovely, unique, sophisticated, and very sexy. Different than any perfume I have ever tried. Smells different each time I wear it. I love it. Hard to find, but I just found out fragrance x is selling it for 39.99, so you don't have to pay outrageous prices on the online auction sites. I am stocking up!

I sprayed the imposter yesterday. Bleurgh - compared to this absolutely fabulous gem. I bought this frequently in the 90s. I was on a very strict Uni student budget and managed to happenstance upon a party plan makeup/fragrance/handbag seller. We'd have wine and cheese and purchase Lancaster skincare and other brands not readily available in Australia then, at great prices, and I fell head over heels in love with Rochas Byzance. I felt sophisticated, alluring, and unique. It's another case of needing a crystal ball capable of predicting the discontinuation/destruction of the essential luxuries, and now, of needing strong recommendations of available alternatives to fill what is likely an unfillable gap.

This is my second review for Byzance. Today i tried it after the shower on a sunny spring day and was positivly surprised by how good actually it smells. Still i am scared off by the beginning, but then after it ́s gone a lot of spices and carnation in the middle are very beautiful. Guess it is more spring-autumn fragrance, since last time i have tried it during winter. And now i smell the roses on the drydown also. N Now it ́s like from zero to hero for me. Back then i didn ́t like it but now i like it a lot. A very beautiful evening fragrance. I wouldn ́t wear it at a daytime, but definitly at evening time. So glad i didn ́t part with my bottle of vintage EDP. :)

This one is a special. The beautiful bottle is worth seeking out, a conversation piece...and the scent is what is describe as unique( that word is overused but I really mean it). It's coolly elegant, gentle adelhydes with carnation and dry crisp floral notes. Underlying incense and something reminiscent of roots, incense, churches and myrrh. Feels mysterious and earthy like a concoction from a wise woman. Not overpowering either. If you want to feel like you've stepped back a few centuries without feeling wish my try this. I am really enjoying it. I wish I could say more but it feels kind of mystical. Like Morgana played by Helen Mirren in Excalibur.

This is my mother's signature and my first perfume. It is spicy and warm and familiar. I remember at one stage when I was 15 my mother was in hospital and to comfort myself at night I would sleep in her bed. Byzance lingered on the cotton covers of her pillow and soothe me into a carefree sleep. This is such a special fragrance to me and although I very rarely use it, it is something that has been in my life as long as I can remember. It is a beautiful fragrance and particularly special to me for the sentimentality I feel for it. If I have a child one day, I hope that my signature will bring them the comfort that Byzance has given me.

Rochas Byzance. Beautiful, strong, unique... and utterly memorable. This is truly a signature-worthy scent—one in a thousand! Rochas hit the nail on the head with this one, only to stupidly discontinue it in a misguided attempt to cater to the weak toilet water floral fruity market. 🙄 Byzance is an older, bolder fragrance that fills the space of the wearer. Trust me, people will know you’re there or have been! And as for clones? There are none that come close! Here’s hoping the new stuff (even though it’s not on the Rochas site) is at least marginally close to the original. Fingers crossed! 🤞 Wear what you want. No labels needed.

2/21/2013 - I recently bought a small sample bottle of the Byzance perfume from an internet provider and the fragrance is not even close to the amazing scent I remember. The perfume is overpowering, even a tiny drop and then it fades after a few hours with no lingering notes. I'm not sure if I really got the original perfume in this sample bottle, if it's been tampered with, if it's gone stale over time or if the perfume has a different chemistry than the eau de toilette. I remember a heavenly scent that lasted all day, so much that I've been seeking it out. Sadly, that's not what I received in this latest bottle.

So beautiful! Warm, graceful, elegant, smooth, unique, a bit of an incense feel but not even a hint of the nag champa or smokey scratchy kind of incense. Nothing screeches or offends- not even at the opening. Enough spice and herbal notes to waiver into more than one fragrance "category"- a touch more oriental than typical chypre floral, not herbal enough to be an aromatic, but enough to temper the florals and spices for a while. The spices are of exquisite quality and develop as the opening fades. Byzance is a treasure- an example of great perfumery. I am grateful to be able to still have some.

Oh my Sister,oh my Bride, thou art a garden barriered... A mystic wave,a fountain sealed... Thy bosom,there it lies, a turkish rose heaven... Fruited and heavy with the most delightful scented wonders... Aye,with heliotrope and musk... With cardamom and basil... With every sort of jasmine sighs... With cedar and with tuberose... And all the sweetest balsam trees... Oh fountain of my gardens, thou art a singing spring flowing thy lilting path from the Cappadocian mountains... Colours of sea,colours of sky with golden sun embellished... Constantinople bows with awe before thy divine beauty...

Seriously, this perfume. If Rochas brings this back it will fly of the shelves. It takes a scent for me to fall for it. If there is any scent close to this i will glady try it out for consolation and not a replacement....but oh how i miss thee my Byzance.All i have now is you at the bottom of the bottle, for me to snif every now and then when i feel nostalgic. So i have broken the rule this 2012 april...sprayed a little and feel guilty, if I get tempted next time might be the last spritz, please Rochas bring back this perfume even as a LIMITED EDITION can do for now.

This is another perfume over whose demise I regularly beat my breast in mourning. It was a lovely, dry chypre that always smelled like bottled heat to me. Wonderful, wonderful chypre, one of my favorites, and one of the perfumes I always received the most compliments on. The idea of this beauty being discontinued to make way for yet another giggly, trend-of-the-moment celeb concoction just makes me...mad. And this is from someone who likes some of the giggly, trend-of-the-moment concoctions. But why can't we keep the beauties around forever?

Our customers would kill for a bottle & yes due to stupidity on P&G's part it's now gone... The stupidty is that fact that established scents like Byzance or Madame Rochas (EDP) sell themselves & need NO advertising due to a large & loyal customer base. New is not better, on that note by introducing new fragrances more often all they do is damage the RRP real value on the marketplace. Guerlain & Chanel are able to charge & hold top dollar values to their almost never changing fragrances, it's a lesson to be learnt by lesser brands...

This was my Signature Scent for years (from age 21 to 25). I bought it in UK in 1995 and wore it endlessly. When bought it again in NY airport (not Duty free, just a weird counter with discontinued perfumes) few years ago was very disappointed as the scent was remotely the one I used to love. Threw the bottle away as it was causing me more pain than pleasure and almost succumbed to temptation to buy it again online. Again, wondering either it's a poor imitation or I grew up and feel it differently.

SURPRISE, SURPRISE!!! I just found two NEW bottles for sale at a price I couldn't pass up. I've sprayed liberally twice today-once for church, the other just for me. I might just spray again before dinner and Mystery Theater on PBS tonight. Then again tomorrow, and tomorrow... I'm olfactory challenged-I can't distinguish many individual notes-all I know is the Coty's Le Chypre and Rocha's Byzance have in their time turned my world upside down with their bouquets and offerings. HEAVEN ON EARTH :)

30. march 2011 I have tried an EDP so far and i must admit that i get some similarities with original formula of "Ysatis" by Givenchy, only this one is more spicy. I remember when many years ago i tried this one it was also quite harsh for me and it still is. The opening is very much like soap (i guess mixing carnation with a lot of citruses is not a good idea). And it stays like that for a while and then simply dissapeares. I cannot detect any rose notes.

I adore this rich! sultry,seductive fragrance. It is perfect for winter evenings curled up under a blanket hear a fireplace and just indulging in its bliss! Warm, evocative floral with just the right amount of aldehydes to make it hum and enough woody musk to bind it all together into perfection. The longer you wear it the more entranced you will become. The vintage is absolutely magnificent! Wow! sillage is heavy Longevity is long lasting

Very closely aligned with my all time favourite; Dali Extrait by Salvador Dali. While it is very close to the Parfum de Toilette too. I won't go into too much detail as so many others have described Byzance with affluent words and exquisite metaphors; quite deservedly too. I will just say this, if you love this old formula, track down the original Dali. Either the Extrait in Black or the PDT. It's much cheaper and easier to obtain.

I bought this & wore it last night for bed...my boyfriend loved it!! I only bought it due to the reviews below & i have to say im well impressed. Im a fan of Rochas anyway but this is my new favourite. Its sexy, warm & sensual. It made me feel the urge to slip in to something 'less comfortable'. Its a strong fragrance to begin with but soon settles into a warm powdery, musky vanilla with great lasting power on me too. Fantastic.

Mmmm...WOW...this is surely heaven on earth! The opening is slightly reminiscent of Sacrebleu, in tems of spicy floral fruity scent, but then it turns powdery and boy it IS powdery and spicy classy very airy powder, not at all chalky. Amazing longevity and projection from little amount, shame it is discontinued. The bottle itself is a masterpiece and the juice is amazing purple colour. I am so lucky to own it.

Majestic,noble,divine!Burnt spices,amber and incense,delicious vanilla,intoxicating carnation,all enshrouded in bold musky tones and infused in rose water!The chypre hint remains but evaporates quite soon on my skin!This fragnance is alluring yet demure,fit for enticing queens who sit on their dignified thrones.A costly infusion which brings east and west together,like in the Byzantine era.

I have some of this left over from the eighties. And I sprayed myself with this the other week when I went to an eighties fancy dress party. It was light and lovely not sweet but perhaps more on the powdery side with a slight spice, But I would say it only lasted a couple of hours. It has been hanging around a couple of decades so I may test a newer bottle if I can get my hands on it.

I bought this one for my wife today to celebrate the birth of our daughter (yesterday). I wanted something elegant and a little different to what she has already got. Her favourites are Chanel no 5 and Shalimar. I think this really complements the other two in being different, but not so different. Somehow it seems appropriate as a scent to give to celebrate the birth of a baby.

It's spicy, warm, and comforting. It makes me joyful and powerful. Byzance begins with a highly loud aldehyde and tuberose that can be overwhelming in the first few minutes. Then a sensuous rose and jasmine note grabs you and won't let go. It meanders into a warm, spiritual spot that your heart will keep after a few hours. It's more of a floral, spicy, Middle Eastern aroma.

Veramente una fragranza particolare,unica e speciale. Avevo la miniatura tanti anni fa...se lo trovassi ora lo comprerei subito! Ma perché non si trovano piu'da nessuna parte i profumi di Rochas! Eppure li fanno ancora tutti! Ho indossato anche Tocade, caldo e talcato e il freschissimo e intimo Fleurs D'Eau. Ma Byzance era sublime. Gesu'Bambino me lo porti per Natale?

I was shopping for a gift for a much beloved cousin in 1988, and I came across this fragrance. I teetered momentarily on the edge of buying it for myself, but ultimately did the generous thing. I've always wondered if she liked it, used the whole bottle, or was secretly horrified by my selection for her. I might prefer not knowing. This scent is bewitching. Loved it.

nothing and i repeat nothing can ever beat the original Byzance! I used to wear it in the evening and it stayed with me (while my nose is an olfactory medium that easily gets bored or forgetful) till the next shower. I miss the nostalgia of my youth in that bottle and i find it so disheartening that is has long been discontinued.

Does anybody know when the original was first discontinued? I am trying to date my bottle. Rochas recycles batch codes every 10 years, and my bottle indicates the date is 2012, which it can not be. My guess is 1992, but if it was still available in 2002 then that's also a possibility. Please PM me if you know the answer. Thanks!

Found my mother's old (nearly finished) bottle that she gifted me, I forgot how much I love this scent! Very regal, bright aldehydes, warm spices, lots of carnation, tuberose, and rose, with warm amber carrying the scent through. Very beautiful and tasteful, every woman should have this scent in her collection.

@PLUMPIE it sounds to me as though you are actually reviewing Byzance (2019) which bears no relation to the masterpiece that is Byzance (1987). Byzance 2019 is very vanilla/powdery with a little spice. I hope you get to try the original which is very deserving of the beautiful blue bottle.