Ancient Scents
& Research

A large, ornate library room with wooden bookshelves filled with old books, a high ceiling, and a group of people seated in chairs, attending a presentation or lecture. There is a large screen displaying a presentation in front of the room.

The Tapputi tablet

is a multidisciplinary research initiative combining archaeology, chemistry, and perfumery.

Centered around the ancient Assyrian perfume of Tappūtī-Bēlat-Ekalle (circa 1200 BCE), a fragrance described as “fit for a king,” the project explores what is considered the oldest known perfume formula. The tablet is of exceptional historical importance not only because Tappūtī is recognised as the first recorded female chemist in history, but also because this is one of the earliest and only known fragrance formulas ever attributed and signed by its creator — an extraordinarily rare occurrence in both ancient and modern perfumery.

The project investigates both the reconstruction of this 3,200-year-old formula and its reinterpretation through a later, 2,000-year-old olfactory perspective. Because of the many unanswered questions surrounding the tablet — including issues of transcription, translation, and the identification of several mysterious ingredients — the research currently presents two possible interpretations based on the historical and scientific knowledge available today.

KAR 220 project
Three people standing in a room with wooden walls and bookshelves. A man in a dark suit is on the left, a woman in the middle is smiling, and a man with a beard in a gray blazer is on the right. All are dressed in dark clothing.

Research Team

Eduardo A. Escobar — Historian & Assyriologist

Marie Urban Le Febvre — Perfumer-Creator

Giacomo Montanari — PhD Student, Department of Chemistry “Giacomo Ciamician”, University of Bologna


Associated Research & Curatorial Team 

Lucia Maini — Full Professor, Department of Chemistry “Giacomo Ciamician”, University of Bologna

Matteo Martelli — Professor in History of Science, University of Bologna; Principal Investigator of the ERC Consolidator Grant Project Alchemy in the Making: From Ancient Babylonia via Graeco-Roman Egypt into the Byzantine, Syriac and Arabic Traditions (1500 BCE–1000 AD) — AlchemEast

Exhibition 

The First Perfume: Tappūtī and the History of Scents

12 October 2025 - 09 November 2025
· Museo di Palazzo Poggi - Via Zamboni 33  - 40126 Bologna, Itlay

More about us

  • Perfumers evaluating raw vanilla ingredients for fragrance formulation.

    Our Expertise

    We create bespoke fragrances for brands, spaces, and exhibitions with discretion and expertise.

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  • Perfumers evaluating fragrance notes in a professional perfume laboratory.

    About us

    Marie Urban Le Febvre belongs to a select circle of independent perfumers, collaborating exclusively with a prestigious family-owned fragrance house.

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  • A close-up black and white photograph of a bundle of Vetiver, with a rectangular label that reads "URBAN SCENT".

    Our Vision

    We use the finest raw materials, exceptional craftsmanship, and a conscious approach to responsible perfumery.

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