Lightyears Collection
Parfum Inconnu
Houbigant
(1910)

Click on image to enlarge Parfum Inconnu

Parfum Inconnu may have been one of the last creations of Houbigant perfumer/owner, Paul Parquet. The small glass bottle shown to the right, with its golden stopper (glass painted gold) is remarkably plain. Originally it probably held about 1/2 ounces (15 ml) of fragrance.

It was plain bottles such as the one shown here that inspired François Coty to begin what has become a packaging revolution for perfume presentations — a revolution which continues today.

Of course Houbigant put their fragrances in nice boxes — but not as nice as the ones Coty would seen begin to use.

In 1910, the Houbigant business still had a few good decates to go but, in retrospect, it had now passed its golden peak, living largely on the huge international distribution network that had been developed in the 19th century.

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