In Splendoribus Sanctorum

[zankoku_zen]

In the brightness of the Saints, from the womb before the Daystar I begot Thee: golden amber, frankincense, and Italian bergamot.

[forspecial_plate]

Frankincense is the strongest note for me, and I think the other notes combine to imitate myrrh, even though there's no myrrh listed in the description.  (or maybe in my mind, I'm expecting myrrh to be there so I'm smelling an illusion of myrrh or something?).  Also, something here reminds me of labdanum.  It's incense-y but also deep and dark, kind of wine-like, with the bergamot adding just a hint of fruitiness.  It is kind of like Thousands of Lights but this is a little lighter, and easier for me to wear.  It's a really nice combination, I love all of these notes so it was a no-brainer, and I'm glad I got it.

[VictorianLass]

In the bottle: A nice spicy incense blend of Frankincense and Amber with a hint of floral.

On the skin:  A complete flip-flop. The incense fades to the background and the bergamot, while soft, comes out. 

Dry down: A lovely even blend of incense and bergamot. 

 

In the bottle it reminds me of when you first walk into an old Catholic Church that still uses incense frequently with perhaps the hint of someone's perfume from the Mass that ended an hour ago.

 

Wearing it reminds me of actually being at a shrine inside a church with incense burning and a statue adorned with flowers, while both fragrances play with my senses!  Quite lovely, not overpowering, but staying with me for hours!  Nice pick!  

[Casablanca]

Freshly applied on my skin, Sanctorum is an amber-frankincense of a sacred mood, a full-on golden incense with church-appropriate gravitas. The bergamot is a light, airy presence around the edges, like a child at play on the floor in a somber place, indulged to be a child.

 

The blend develops a little perfume vibe as it dries, which may be partly the bergamot. Something about the perfume quality also reminds me of petitgrain. 

 

This blend is handsome and an excellent fit for a mood. Though it's not my kind of thing, I'm glad I tried it.

 

[zankoku_zen]

Bright amber and frankincense with a note of bergamot. Grave, golden, resinous. Good throw and wear length.

[kakiphony]

This is such a gorgeous and perfectly wearable blend. It has become my daily fragrance since Christmas and at the rate I am going, my bottle will not let a whole year.

 

It's a perfect skin scent on me, subtle with a deeply resinous dry down and just a little bit of ripe, sweet, citrus fruit. Golden is exactly the way to describe this one.

 

I don't really get incense from this, although that may be because I associate incense so strongly nag champa-type and smoky smells. Instead, the frankincense in this is very much unburned frankincense resin to me. (It smells like the frankincense tears that come on my favorite soap and that I hoard like a dragon.) And don't let my "sweet" comment scare the non-food people. This is NOT a cloying sweetness or a sugar sweetness. This is a golden syrup sweetness that is subtle, but delicious. It's a sweetness I associate with cuddling up under super soft mohair blankets freshly clean from a bath, not of candy.

 

The throw on this one is mild for me, and that's part of why I can wear it as a daily scent. It sits close to my skin and no one would notice it unless they hug me, but I can smell it and I smell dang good.

[Juliamon]

This is a fairly simple blend, but a beautiful one. Not loud nor too quiet, not heavy nor too light. Warm, sacred resin incense with a flicker of brightness from the bergamot. It doesn't stand out very much at first from other frankincense-heavy blends, but develops in the nicest way over the course of an hour into something more balanced between all the elements. A very meditative scent, one that could easily be a signature scent for someone with a strong spiritual lean.

[Lucchesa]

In Splendoribus Sanctorum is indeed beautiful.  I occasionally enjoy wearing Penitence, but this is brighter and more optimistic, like a cathedral with beams of sunlight slicing through the gloom.  The bergamot brightens the frankincense and the amber warms it, so that it's glowy and sacred both.  I have to be in a very Catholic mood to wear Penitence, or giving a lecture on Fra Angelico or something, but I can see wearing In Splendoribus much more frequently and joyfully. 

[donkehpoo]

Wet: Frankincense and amber primarily, with the bergamot in the background giving this a very "clean, fresh" scent (moreso than a "citrus" one).

 

Dry: Less frankincense, more amber, and.. less bergamot. The frankincense and amber do smell lovely together (like golden, warm frankincense) but overall it's just not my jam.

[tsentsitivenose]

My skin does something that makes this blend overwhelmingly powdery.  Maybe there's a drop of something that my skin can't keep in check.  In the decant, it's lovely and golden, but dried on my skin, it's white and powdery.

[VetchVesper]

This is one of BPAL's ecclesiastical blends, like Jacob's Ladder or Ecclesiastiphobia. It's dry, powdery resins that smell a tad dingey to my nose, but if you like church incense blends, it's worth a try. 

When I first got this, I found the bergamot clashed unpleasantly with the resins. Aging's improved things, with the bergamot adding a touch of bitter green to the whole. Still not really digging it though. 

[Dancing Raven]

This one doesn't morph a whole lot. From the start it is a beautiful, sweet (but not powdery) frankincense and amber. About one hour in, I get a faint mint and cinnamon in the background. The cinnamon fades away quickly, but the minty smell - which is so small that I think it's probably just notes mingling and confusing my nose - stays for around 30 minutes. It sounds odd, but it's pleasant. 2.5 hours later I can smell myrrh. Frankincense, sweet amber, and myrrh all joining together to create an intoxicating, resinous scent. Lovely. That is how it remains for hours. There isn't a lot of throw, but it lasted well over 10 hours on me. If you like Midnight Mass, you will adore this one. They smell very similar to me. Even though I already own MM, I will be holding on to this. There's enough of a difference for me to warrant owning both, and it is just a fantastic scent regardless. I didn't get any bergamot.

5 out of 5 stars. 

[artisjok]

In Splendoribus Sanctorum is primarily a soft blend of frankincense and powdery amber on me. I’m sad that the bergamot is MIA, because I think a bit of added depth would make it a keeper for me.
As is, it’s not something I would reach for over my other frank and/or amber scents.
On someone else, it’s probably a heavenly, glowing experience!  

[starbrow]

I love all three notes in this blend, so it was a no-brainer blind bottle last Yule. I was surprised when it was mostly fuzzy amber and fuzzier bergamot, with little influence of the frankincense. After a year of aging, however, the resins in this one have thickened considerably! YESSSS this is the thicc frank I was hoping for! It is now a rich, warm incense, glowing considerably with that amber that sticks around and melts down into the same amber as the Amber Incense and Honey Cakes (from the same Yule 2019 release).

 

The cuddly citrus of the bergamot is still quite present, distinguishing it from other churchy incense blends. It gives this a bright, golden quality that is now beautifully balanced by the chunky frankincense, when before there was definitely an imbalance. If you smelled this one last year and were hoping for something different, give it another chance now. I am so glad I kept my bottle and plan to hang onto it and wear it a lot this Yule and future ones to come.

 

For fun, I matched it up against two of my other favorite Yule church incenses, Midnight Mass and Snow of the Gravestones at Petersfriedhof. All three are very distinct! Midnight Mass is just as bright in its own way, but instead of bergamot, I smell a red fruit in it almost like red grapes or a cherry incense. I can't identify the exact red fruit, but it's almost a blood red wine kind of quality. The frankincense is less up front than it is in In Splendoribus now. And Snow of the Gravestones is a beautiful chilly frankincense (maybe even champa) with the best snow note I've ever smelled from the lab. You can smell the warmth inside the church, but you're viewing it from outside in the cold of the snow.

 

In Splendoribus Sanctorum undeniably has its own unique place in the pantheon of Yule incense. I love it now.

[tinyvulture]

Really weak on me, sadly! Very light amber and a whisper of frankincense.  And then it’s gone!

[skyturtles]

Frankincense is usually overpowering and strong with a wide throw, but that is not its case in this limited edition, Yule 2019 scent. Although that Catholic church staple is the main event here, it is soft enough for everyday wear. It doesn't last forever and a day, so I find myself sticking the imp in my pocket and reapplying.

There is a crisp citrus intertwined with the sacred smokiness that prevents you from smelling like an altar server, perhaps orange or mikan. *looks at the description* OH, it's the BERGAMOT. That makes sense.

This scent will personally remind me of cremation, and Seattle.

Edited August 18, 2021 by skyturtles