Provençal cypress

Cupressus sempervirens arrived in the Mediterranean basin from Persia long before the rise of ancient Greece. The Greeks and Romans both prized cypress for ritual purposes, using its oil in sacred contexts and as a refined aromatic. The wood's resistance to decay reinforced its association with eternity, embedding the tree into funerary and spiritual traditions that persisted through the medieval period. Grasse, nestled in the hills above the Côte d'Azur, had been processing aromatic botanicals since at least the Renaissance, originally focused on leather-tanning and medicinal preparations. The turning point came in the sixteenth century when Catherine de Médicis married King Henry II of France, crossing the Alps with Italian perfumery knowledge in tow. Under her influence and that of her successors, Grasse shifted decisively toward luxury fragrance production. Cypress cultivation suited the regional terroir perfectly, and its essential oil became a staple in the formulation of masculine and unisex fragrances requiring a dry, woody backbone. Today, Provençal cypress remains a marker of authenticity in classical perfumery, representing a direct link between ancient Mediterranean tradition and modern French craftsmanship.