Funerary Papyri

[Antoinette]

Lilith was incredibly disappointed that she wasnt allowed to touch the Egyptian funerary texts at the British Museum.

Myrrh and papyrus reed with a smear of vanilla cream frosting.

Myrrh, Egyptian stuff AND vanilla?!? Yes. Please.

What an evocative blend! I've never been to Egypt but this conjures an image of strolling the banks of the Nile, lined by papyrus reeds blowing in the gentle wind, while myrrh incense wafts in swirls around you.

The papyrus reed is green and watery. It's fresh and a little bit sharp (which I love!). It juxtaposes beautifully with the softness of the myrrh. As it dries down, the watery aspect seems to fade but everything else remains consistent. It's quite atmospheric and I'm delighted with it.

 

ETA: A few hours into the drydown and I definitely pick up on the vanilla cream frosting. It's sweet and yummy!

I'm interested to read how other people interpret it!

Edited September 20, 2016 by Antoinette

[MCS4096]

This blend called out to me so strongly! What an unusual and intriguing blend of notes, I had to try it right away.

 

In the bottle it is achingly syrupy sweet with a distinct 'green and watery' note, just as Antoinette described it. However, I would personally not describe the myrrh note here as soft! I am a lover and amper of myrrh and I think not since my beloved Minotaur have I witnessed such a forceful and spicy myrrh (not even the Golgothan Myrrh, which was practically rosey to my nose) For a brief few minutes after application I smell the papyrus note unfurl, green and reedy, wet without really being "aquatic" It's exotic and fascinating combined with the sweetness here, then BANG! in comes the myrrh and for the rest of the wear this is sweet and spicy nose-tickling resin for me. It's definitely a beautiful myrrh, but of course I miss the initial complexity. We'll see how some rest helps.

[Kay Torres]

Fresh outta the mail, so keep that in mind...

 

In the bottle: Green!! Wet and green and thick! I'm assuming that's the papyrus note.

 

Wet: Still very green in a way that makes me think of still water down south. Almost grassy, but not really. Sappy, wet green, but smooth.

 

Dry: I'm waiting and waiting to catch a hint of anything else. Ten minutes in and I'm just starting to catch a hint of vanilla with the green. Fifteen minutes in and here comes my myrrh fix. It's mingling with the papyrus and the vanilla giving it an interesting spiciness. I like it. I'm not sure I'll need more than my bottle, but it's definitely interesting.

[bulletslc]

So gorgeous! I was hoping for something along the lines of Mr. Ibis and this does not dissapoint. The reeds are a beautiful, fresh, green note with the myrrh grounding it and the vanilla cream softening the edges. Bravo, Beth! Another stunning masterpiece! This will probably be my summer go to scent next year.

[Casablanca]

In the bottle, Papyri smells mostly like vanilla cream frosting.

 

On my skin, it's vanilla cream-slathered Egypt for about ten seconds, and then that blends together somehow into a vanilla-toned, aged paper-vellum scroll -- a papyrus scroll with a leathery touch. The myrrh comes forth as Papyri dries, blending in to the old scroll impression I'm getting.

 

And I think: this is the Library of Alexandria. And that's a piece of magic, because this wasn't one of the bottles I ordered, but I've been reading about the Library of Alexandria lately. This blend is what I wanted from Mr. Ibis.

 

As it happened, Papyri didn't work well on my friend's skin, and the bottle has stayed with me. I suppose it was meant to be.

 

Now I owe her a backup of Outlaw.

[Dark Alice]

I took a chance on this one and I am so glad that I did. The frosting blends so well with the paper note that it is cozy. Such a pleasant surprise. I thought this would be super sweet and it's not. I may or may not need a back up of this from NYCC.

[Aviatrix]

This starts out kind of like a sugary greenery blend, which I am not a fan of, sadly.

BUT as it dries down it turns into a delicious vanilla-sugar-paper blend that is exactly what I was hoping for!

 

This is a scent that needs to be given a chance if you are put off by the initial stage, because it is definitely a morpher.

 

Throw is medium, and staying power is good.

[LizziesLuck]

Wet: Very green and reedy! A bit aquatic. With vanilla frosting underneath. So different and interesting! I like it.

 

 

Dry: A very light scent, but so different from anything I have! I need to give it a better test (I have a million scents I am testing right now) but I kind of think I love it - just not sure how much I'll actually wear it.

[patina]

Sadly the reed pings my scent memory as window cleaner. It's green and the most prominent part before the drydown. As it dries, I get more dusty papyrus and that smear of vanilla cake frosting.

 

It's as though someone smeared an old papyrus scroll with cake and used windex to get it off. A memorable scent story, but not something I need a bottle of.

 

For those who don't have the same scent associations this might smell like vanilla frosting, dust and green cologne.

Edited October 13, 2016 by patina

[Little Bird]

So sweet that it's cloying on me, with a watery, green bamboo type scent from the papyrus. Slightly soapy. The overall effect is, unfortunately, really cheap smelling on me, like a vanilla scented glade plug-in. Burnt sugar, strangely chemical and harshly soapy.

[roseus]

The reed is green and dewy. The pairing with the vanilla is interesting in a good way. It doesn't make sense but it smells so good. It's nice and light. But then the myrrh comes in on the dry down giving it a deeper base. It's now a nice vanilla-myrrh but with a soft aquatic touch.

[sqwook]

Green and fresh when wet. And then *entirely* different when dry on your skin for a few hours: Glorious soft-spice-of-myrrh-hint-of-vanilla. So gorgeous when dry.

[Teaker]

I don't like green scents so I was worried when I saw the reviews for this. It definitely does start off very green and cologney. I wold describe it as unisex. As it dries it softens and morphs into myrrh and vanilla frosting. I wish that this was a more sophisticated vanilla, unfortunately it leans towards a rich buttercream which doesn't go as well with the green undertones. I like the middle stage but unfortunately the drydown on this is quite perfumey, which gives me a bit of a headache.

 

Overall this is very unique, I don't have anything else like it. I enjoy it and even though the beginning and drydown are not favorites I will continue to wear it when I'm looking for something a bit different.

[lookingglass]

I love myrrh, vanilla, and bookish notes, so I was very surprised that this did not work for me at all. It's very green...wet even. I was expecting something much drier with strong, sweet incense notes.

[zankoku_zen]

A lot of myrrh and papyrus and just a tinge of vanilla. Sweet incense. Good throw and wear length.

[milo]

Green in a reedy kind of way. I'm getting a bit of citrus here, or something fresh. I don't like the reedy-ness of this blend, it reminds me of that museum vanilla blend, which name escapes me atm.

[Minh Scent]

Oh, this is rocketing to the top of my favorites list...funny reading all the experiences above, all so different!

 

Mine- wet, it is reedy green with barest hint of aquatic (I thought of the reeds along the Nile). The moment it dries, deep myrrh with a twinge of the prettiest vanilla. Overnight, it turned to a beautiful perfumey incense. Intriguing, long lasting and addictive.

[Morgaine Fey Brindle]

This one absolutely reminds me of being nestled in tall grasses and then catching a hint of a bakery and a church on the wind. The vanilla is happily not cloying on my skin--it has stayed balanced by the myrrh very nicely. I may need a second bottle as I have very little luck with vanilla scents, but the resin is saving this and making me feel girly and sophisticated... It is not at all a foodie scent to me, even though it is described as vanilla frosting.

[Jenjin]

Like a Priestess richly adorned. Oh yeah, I love this one.

A clean, watery reed pool start that dried down to creamy, vanilla smoke incense.
I'm not so familiar with the scent of papyrus, but its quite fresh and magical.
It's like standing in a ancient, crumbling temple, surrounded by a green croaking pool,
while meditating in the burning spicy, vanilla myrrh resin.
Hypnotic, sweet and I think will be perfect for springtime.

Edited February 13, 2017 by Jenjin

[Epiphany]

I was drawn to this scent because of the unusual blend of notes. In the decant, all I can smell is a the bright aquatic papyrus and it's the same on my skin--basically a single note, with no hint of the myrrh or frosting. As it dries down, the myrrh (and perhaps a bit of the frosting) begin to assert themselves through the papyrus, but it is a faint dusting of scent. Ultimately, it dries to something a bit soapy, as papyrus tends to do on my skin, but with a hint of myrrh.

 

ETA: Ok, so hours (like 4 hours later) the soap completely disappears and I'm left with the most amazing vanilla myrrh frosting. Seriously, it's an edible myrrh scent. It's glorious, but I don't think I can deal with the papyrus soap for the preceding several hours. ...I'll have to repeat my skin test to see what happens.

Edited February 16, 2017 by Epiphany

[tinyvulture]

It's so reedy. I was expecting a somewhat foody scent, but I get no vanilla frosting at all. It's actually the green, watery papyrus reed that's center stage here. It's sunny, almost lemony. I don't really do lemony or watery, personally, but it's a unique and interesting perfume. Can't say I've ever smelled of papyrus before!

[whisperstilled]

Green sweetness with vanilla and myrrh. Heavenly. The green is distinctly reedy, like plants at a riverside, appropriately enough. There's something soft and wet about it which I just love. A strange and really pleasing scent. Low throw. A little too green for me, perhaps - I wish the myrrh came out more on the drydown.

[Lucchesa]

I was not at all familiar with papyrus as a scent, and it smelled not aquatic to me (which on my skin = soapy) but bright and definitely reedy, and almost had a hint of lemongrass about it (or is there a little lemon peel in the frosting? That's how I make it...). The beautiful soft myrrh began to bloom as it dried, and only dry did I get the vanilla frosting beginning to emerge. What I assume was the papyrus did not last as long as the myrrh and vanilla. It's lovely, all in all, gentle and springlike, with low throw and relatively short wear length, which is typical for me.

 

ETA: I'm retesting this as someone is selling a bottle, and it has lasted all day this time.

Edited October 21, 2017 by Lucchesa

[trinitysite]

Oh, I really like this...it goes on green/grassy smelling and sort of aquatic, but then it's just a creamy, luscious vanilla. Hours later, it's a more spicy-vanilla, no more grassiness. Medium wear length and low throw.

[doomsday_disco]

In the decant: The papyrus reed stands out to me the most. It smells lemony to me. Behind it, I get some myrrh and a bit of the frosting.

 

Wet: This is very lemon-y, fresh, and green on me, which I attribute to the papyrus reed. I get the myrrh in the background, which doesn’t seem to be a dark variety, but it’s also not the powdery, soft kind in scents like Bastet, either. I am not getting any of the vanilla cream frosting on my skin. Sad!

 

Dry: The papyrus reed continues to be the dominant note, but I’m getting a little more of the myrrh now and a bit of the frosting --- it really is just a smear of frosting, as it’s described in the description.

 

After a few hours, it becomes myrrh-dominant with just a hint of the vanilla frosting. The myrrh in this smells incense-y to me.

 

After several hours of wear, I finally get more than just a smidge of the vanilla frosting. It has become a vanilla frosting smeared over an incense-y myrrh with a little papyrus reed. This is the phase of the scent I enjoy the most. If only it didn’t take so long to get here!

 

Verdict: While I enjoyed the scent after several hours of wear, I spent about four hours wishing for more vanilla. I do not think I am patient enough to wait for it to become stronger since it spent a long time being mostly papyrus reed, and then mostly myrrh. I am glad that I was able to try it, though!