Genuine Civet Paste. Musk. Perfume ingredient. Natural ... | 台北市立動物園資訊網

One of the rarest of traditional fragrance materials, Civet has been used for thousands of years as a perfume ingredient and fixative, It lends depth, dimension and a note of urgency to a perfume blend. Said to have been one of the gifts the Queen of Sheba brought to King Solomon, Civet is thought to arouse desire and lust with its animalic edge. The Civet, of the family Viverridae, has a perineal gland which produces a paste it uses to mark its territory. This paste is collected and processed into a perfume absolute or tincture. Starting with an unpleasant aura, Civet sweetens with age and develops sweet, almost floral notes and a softness that counterbalances its animal heart. There has been much controversy around traditional methods of keeping Civets for their musk, and rightly so.

The western world has boy...