Liu by Guerlain, launched in 1929 and created by Jacques Guerlain, draws its inspiration from the haunting beauty and tragic romance of Puccini's opera Turandot. In the opera, Liu is the name of a slave girl who plays a pivotal role in the dramatic love story. The plot of Turandot revolves around the cold and cruel Princess Turandot, who has vowed to remain unmarried unless a suitor can solve three riddles. Failure results in execution. Prince Calaf, entranced by her beauty, takes on the challenge. Liu, a slave girl deeply in love with Calaf, represents the tender heart of the opera. Her selfless devotion leads her to sacrifice her life for his, embodying unwavering loyalty and deep, tragic love.
The name Liu is taken from the opera's original Italian libretto, though the character and name have Chinese roots. Pronounced "LU," the name evokes simplicity, grace, and quiet strength. Liu, in the context of the opera, symbolizes purity, selflessness, and unrequited love, images that resonate through the ages. For a perfume, the name "Liu" conjures emotions of delicate elegance, soft femininity, and quiet power—traits that would have appealed to the women of the time, seeking a reflection of their own grace and inner strength.
Women of the late 1920s, emerging from the flapper era and the tumult of World War I, were embracing more freedom and confidence in their personal lives. A fragrance like Liu, named after a character who was at once loyal and tragically romantic, would evoke an air of mystery and tenderness. It allowed women to connect to something poetic and timeless, while also embracing a new era of modernity, where the art of scent was evolving rapidly. The name would have evoked imagery of far-off, exotic lands and timeless emotions, appealing to the sophisticated, worldly woman of the late 1920s.
In scent, Liu captures the essence of its namesake through its classification as an aldehydic floral. Aldehydes were seen as daring, fresh, and modern notes in perfumery at the time. Liu was Guerlain’s first fragrance to use aldehydes in such a bold measure, competing with other iconic aldehydic florals of the period, such as Chanel No. 5 (1921), Arpège by Lanvin (1927), L’Aimant by Coty (1927), and Evening in Paris by Bourjois (1929). These perfumes revolutionized the way women perceived scent—shifting from simple, single-note florals to more complex, sophisticated compositions. The aldehydes in Liu add a sparkling, almost abstract quality to the fragrance, opening it with a burst of brightness that feels crisp and effervescent, yet intangible, like a gleam of light or the soft shimmer of silk.
The 1920s were a time of innovation and excitement in many fields, including perfumery. Aldehydes, once considered experimental, became a symbol of modernity, giving fragrances a crystalline sharpness and a radiant lift that natural ingredients alone couldn't achieve. This innovation allowed perfumes to last longer on the skin, giving them an almost ethereal presence. For Liu, the aldehydes act as a vehicle to transport the wearer into an imagined world of elegance, art, and high romance, much like the opera that inspired it.
The name Liu is taken from the opera's original Italian libretto, though the character and name have Chinese roots. Pronounced "LU," the name evokes simplicity, grace, and quiet strength. Liu, in the context of the opera, symbolizes purity, selflessness, and unrequited love, images that resonate through the ages. For a perfume, the name "Liu" conjures emotions of delicate elegance, soft femininity, and quiet power—traits that would have appealed to the women of the time, seeking a reflection of their own grace and inner strength.
Women of the late 1920s, emerging from the flapper era and the tumult of World War I, were embracing more freedom and confidence in their personal lives. A fragrance like Liu, named after a character who was at once loyal and tragically romantic, would evoke an air of mystery and tenderness. It allowed women to connect to something poetic and timeless, while also embracing a new era of modernity, where the art of scent was evolving rapidly. The name would have evoked imagery of far-off, exotic lands and timeless emotions, appealing to the sophisticated, worldly woman of the late 1920s.
In scent, Liu captures the essence of its namesake through its classification as an aldehydic floral. Aldehydes were seen as daring, fresh, and modern notes in perfumery at the time. Liu was Guerlain’s first fragrance to use aldehydes in such a bold measure, competing with other iconic aldehydic florals of the period, such as Chanel No. 5 (1921), Arpège by Lanvin (1927), L’Aimant by Coty (1927), and Evening in Paris by Bourjois (1929). These perfumes revolutionized the way women perceived scent—shifting from simple, single-note florals to more complex, sophisticated compositions. The aldehydes in Liu add a sparkling, almost abstract quality to the fragrance, opening it with a burst of brightness that feels crisp and effervescent, yet intangible, like a gleam of light or the soft shimmer of silk.
The 1920s were a time of innovation and excitement in many fields, including perfumery. Aldehydes, once considered experimental, became a symbol of modernity, giving fragrances a crystalline sharpness and a radiant lift that natural ingredients alone couldn't achieve. This innovation allowed perfumes to last longer on the skin, giving them an almost ethereal presence. For Liu, the aldehydes act as a vehicle to transport the wearer into an imagined world of elegance, art, and high romance, much like the opera that inspired it.
