Parfums de Marly
A unique visual signature based on accords, character, and seasonality
Myrrh and frankincense arrive with immediate gravitas, dense and resinous, accompanied by a whisper of clove's peppery bite that prevents the resins from feeling purely solemn. The initial impression is unmistakably aromatic, almost medicinal—this is incense before it becomes perfume.
As the composition settles, honey emerges with unexpected warmth, and the gaiac wood reveals a quietly woody, slightly briny character that anchors the sweetness. The leather presence intensifies, dry and slightly smoky, whilst the tobacco and styrax create a subtle burnt-sugar quality that's genuinely compelling—less sweet treat, more the smell of caramelised wood smoke.
The resinous elements dominate entirely now, with the papyrus and sandalwood creating an almost parchment-like dryness. What remains is a lingering whisper of leather and benzoin, increasingly minimal but stubbornly present—less a fragrance now than a scent-memory, hazy and introspective.
Hamdani is a deeply resinous meditation rather than a fragrance in the traditional sense—a scent that assumes you're already familiar with the smell of temple incense and aged leather-bound manuscripts. Fabrice Pellegrin has constructed something almost austere here, built on the marriage of myrrh and frankincense that immediately announces ecclesiastical intentions, yet the clove in the heart prevents this from becoming mere olfactory genuflection.
What's most compelling is how the honey doesn't sweeten but instead acts as an amber-coloured binding agent, allowing the gaiac wood to emerge with a subtle saline bitterness—that mineral, almost salty quality that prevents the composition from cloying. The leather arrives not as the polished cordovan of a luxury good, but rather as worn, weathered skin that's absorbed decades of use. It plays beautifully against the tobacco and styrax, which together create a slightly singed, resinous haze, as though you've just extinguished a sandalwood incense stick.
Add fragrances to your collection and unlock your personalised scent DNA, note map, and shareable identity card.
3.7/5 (108)