The Story
Why it exists.
The beginning
Elagabal - Heliogabalus takes its name from the Roman emperor Heliogabalus, whose brief reign is associated with religious controversy, sexual scandal, and an extravagant public image. Ricardo Ramos, the perfumer, and Jorge Lee developed this unisex fragrance for Ricardo Ramos Perfumes de Autor in 2021. Its inspiration connects to Lawrence Alma-Tadema's painting The Roses of Heliogabalus, where rose petals fall from above in a scene drawn from ancient history. The composition turns that theatrical floral image into a modern scent: gardenia, berries, bergamot, Turkish rose, lipstick, musk, saffron, costus, and styrax. It is less a quiet portrait than a curtain rising on a fragrant scandal.
The notes make sense as a set of contrasts. Bergamot and petitgrain bring a clipped citrus brightness, while gardenia gives the opening a creamy floral surface. Turkish rose and lipstick push the heart toward polished glamour, with blackcurrant adding a dark, juicy edge. Down below, musk softens the drama, saffron brings heat, costus adds an earthy bitterness, and styrax gives the drydown a resinous shadow. The result balances Roman spectacle with the intimacy of a familiar floral scent worn close to the skin.
The evolution
The opening arrives with a cool, polished sparkle. Bergamot and petitgrain cut through gardenia and wild berries, giving the first impression a clean, bright edge before the fruit settles into something rounder. Turkish rose, blackcurrant, and lipstick then take over, shifting the mood toward glamorous red, dark berries, and powdered floral warmth. As the heart fades, the base does the lingering. Saffron adds a dry spice, costus brings an earthy counterweight, and styrax leaves a resinous trail beneath the musk. On skin, the fragrance moves from polished brightness to a darker, powdery warmth. What stays with you is less a single flower than the trace of a dramatic scene: musk, rose, spice, and a soft synthetic sweetness settled into skin.
Cultural impact
This fragrance sits within the house's collector-minded approach to scent as historical and intellectual erotica. Its Roman emperor reference places it in a lineage of perfume-as-narrative: a dramatic cultural figure translated into a contemporary floral-fruity composition rather than a straightforward historical reconstruction.
The House
Ricardo Ramos Perfumes de AutorRicardo Ramos Perfumes de Autor creates artistic fragrances from Granada, Spain. Each scent references Andalusian history, colonial trade routes, and the cultural mix of South American expatriates who live in Granada and Istanbul. The line balances vintage ingredients such as oud, ambergris, and citrus with modern laboratory techniques, offering collectors a narrative that feels both scholarly and sensual. Recent releases like HooDoo Blues (2023) and Manigua (2025) illustrate the brand’s ongoing dialogue between past and present, while older classics such as AGUA DE BARCELONA (2004) remain reference points for the house’s evolving language.
The Creator
Ricardo RamosRamos gravitates toward opulent, characterful compositions that refuse to disappear into the background. Oriental structures appear frequently in his work, as seen in Cristina la Veneno, an assertive unisex fragrance that takes its name from Spanish cultural iconography and wr…
