Date: Saturday, July 25, 2026
Time: 1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Location: Center for Hellenic Studies
Join us the afternoon of Saturday, July 25 for a hands-on ancient perfume-making workshop guided by historian of science Dr. Sean Coughlin (Junior Star Research Fellow at the Czech Academy of Sciences and lead of the project Alchemies of Scent) and Barcelona- and Berlin-based olfactory artist Klara Ravat.
Participants will make an Egyptian-styled perfume from the Greco-Roman period, produced in the ancient city of Mendes at the time of Cleopatra VII, following a process preserved in a seventh-century book of recipes. We will smell the difference between the raw ingredients used in the past and the prepared ingredients of today: bitter almond extract, cardamom, galbanum, myrrh, calamus, and honey. Along the way, we will learn about the practice of ancient Egyptian and Greek perfumery and its place in the history of art and culture.
Participants will leave this session with two samples of the Metopion perfume—an ancient one and a modern adaptation. All equipment and ingredients will be supplied.
Free and open to the public with advanced registration. Seating is limited. Please notify the CHS team (events@chs.harvard.edu) as soon as possible if needing to cancel so that a spot may be made available to other individuals.
Please note that the workshop involves being in close proximity to odorous materials, both raw ingredients and essential oils. This workshop is therefore not recommended for those who are sensitive to smells.
More details about the recipe and ingredients involved can be offered upon request.