A letter to our Friends.

 

Dear Friends,

In June 2025, "Raiders of the Lost Scent" reached an unusual milestone.

This site officially reached the three million page views. This is a truly gratifying result. While there are countless blogs, websites and video channels that boast far higher traffic numbers, this is a figure that brings us great satisfaction, because "Raiders" is a "homemade" blog. in the truest sense of the word. And the most interesting thing is that the more time passes, the more the numbers increase.

The only driving force behind this blog was the passion of its founder, who, like many other perfume enthusiasts, was faced with the constant evolution and change of perfumes; therefore, he thought of compiling guides on "how to recognize old perfumes", confident in the fact that "the older, the better".

A lot of time has passed and now we are trying to keep the spirit of the blog alive, trying to publish the vast amount of unpublished articles and to give life to the remaining raw-notes (really, really many). That's right: there is still a huge amount of material to publish. Just to mention a few: 

- Other vintage brands comprehensive guides; 
- Questions and Answers with perfume houses ex-employees;
- "A closer look to vintage fragrances" serie: i.e, discussions about a vintage scent, commented by fragrance experts; 

- Reformulation lists;
...and much other stuff.

This is a real time-consuming work: "repairing" posts, fixing photos, updating infos, making what has already been written more presentable, and obviously posting new articles.

This is why we ask you for a little help, knowing that we can offer you nothing more than work and good-will to continue keeping this blog alive and open. And, above all, maintain this site free-of-charge.

If you think "Raiders" has helped you over the years,
If you think your knowledge of vintage perfumes has improved,
If discovering the meaning of old batch-codes has helped you,
If you were able to benefit from these informations,

We ask you for a little help.
If you can offer a small contribution, solely for the time spent keeping up with the blog, then please "offer us a coffee".

We thank you. 

The "Raiders" team.

Feel free to write comments or suggestions!

---------

Some of the comments received over the years and discussions on forums (all names used under permission)

- "Raiders of the Lost Scent": I fell in love with this blog just reading its name! (A.Kosik)

- I love "Raiders of the Lost Scent" because it gives me the feeling that they aren't doing "paid advertising" to anyone. Plus, they never tried to sell me anything. It's like it gives a sense of intellectual honesty. (J. Meyer)

- ...."Raiders" blog can be a bit weird and tough to navigate sometimes. Nothing is obvious right away; you have to go through it line by line, and it can feel clunky. But I can assure you, I eventually got my fragrances cataloged, even though I didn't know anything about them beforehand. (P. Van der Tamm)

- "Raiders of the Lost Scent" feels completely old-fashioned. It doesn't have video channels or real social media connections; it seems like a site from another era. But still, I can always find my answers there". (D. Knorr)

- "When I need to look up a new fragrance, I just go to any of the many check sites; they're fantastic. But if I'm trying to find out about something from way back—30, 40, 50 years ago—I use RotlS, hands down." (F. Clemens)

- Well. I thing that in terms of authority (and in its very small and specific sector) the "Raiders" blog is second to none. (D. Errington)

- "The most amazing thing is how much information you can get for free. Nobody has ever asked me for a single cent." (W. Bernard)

- "...it's a difficult site to follow, but thanks to Raiders I managed to avoid being scammed while buying fragrances!" (M. Butler)

- "...I managed to sell a couple of scents at a $$$ price because by reading on RotLS I understood what year they were produced and therefore demonstrated that they were old-formula vintage fragrances..." (Ebay seller) 

- ...thanks to this blog I better understood the history of reformulations and also, in most cases, how to distinguish the old from the new. (C. Mènard)

- "Just a fact: no one had ever published this infos about, say, Jean Patou perfumes before. Nobody, except for those in the industry, had any idea what all those apparently random numbers meant. And we're talking about the most precious perfumes (Joy, 1000) that have ever been created". (E. Johnston)

- The best thing about "Raiders of the Lost Scent" (IMHO) is that it feels like it was written by people who really know their stuff. (R.Costain)

- I'm a little embarrassed to admit this, but if I mention in my ads that my perfumes are a match for what "Raiders" wrote, they sell right away. It's like a seal of approval." (A.Brown)

"Raiders of the Lost Scent" is...

Batch-codes

Year-of-production, 

all-you-need-to-know

about vintage perfumes in the following pages:

-GUERLAIN perfumes ( here )

-YVES SAINT LAURENT perfumes ( here )

-CHRISTIAN DIOR  perfumes  ( here )

-GIORGIO ARMANI Perfumes ( here )

-VAN CLEEF et ARPELS perfumes ( here )

-CHANEL perfumes ( here )

-BVLGARI perfumes ( here )

-HERMES perfumes ( here )

-VERSACE perfumes ( here )

-GIVENCHY perfumes ( here )

-GUY LAROCHE perfumes (here) 

-CACHAREL perfumes ( here )

-ROCHAS perfumes (here) 

-JEAN PATOU perfumes (here)

-LANCOME perfumes (here)

-CARON perfumes (here)

-RALPH LAUREN perfumes (here)

-JEAN PAUL GAULTIER perfumes (here)

-SERGE LUTENS perfumes (here)

-GUCCI perfumes (here)

-THIERRY MUGLER perfumes (here) 

Plus:

Kouros by Yves Saint Laurent, visual guide (here)

Fahrenheit by Christian Dior, visual guide  (here)

Azzaro pour Homme by Azzaro, visual guide (here)

Drakkar Noir by Guy Laroche, visual guide (here)

Opium by Yves Saint Laurent, visual guide (here)

Samsara by Guerlain, visual guide (here) 

and others..

Thierry Mugler Vintage Perfumes

In this post: batchcodes, boxes, labels, and everything you really need to identify Thierry Mugler perfumes from the very beginning.

(Andre's raw notes, year 2015, December. Please note that this writing dates back to the end of 2015 and does not take into account everything that happened after 2016. It is therefore to be understood as "truly vintage" Mugler perfumes)

.....phone call to Piatigorsky (again) asking for some infos about Thierry Mugler perfumes. He has good memories, especially about the first perfume that came out: "Angel" (year 1992)

Piatigorsky says it was a milestone in the field of perfumery, Angel was perhaps the first scent to use "gourmand" notes. Famous writer Michael Edwards, in his book "Perfume Legends" dedicates several pages to this perfume (a news to check). Luca Turin's Perfume Guide gives an exceptional 5 stars. It is likely that in the future it will become a collector's item. "Angel" was the first scent to inaugurate the "olfactive dessert" fashion.

"Angel" was an unusual perfume, because after its launch it had an immense, growing success and at the end of the 90s in France it reached the sales of "Chanel No. 5". One of the consequences was that Thierry Mugler's perfumes became much more famous than the clothes and accessoires, to the point that, shortly after 2000, the Thierry Mugler fashion line declined, and only the perfumes remained (very unusual, news to check, again).

Obviously the great success of "Angel" has given rise to an infinite number of clones and, unfortunately, fakes. The first rule is therefore to make sure you have an authentic perfume in your hands.

CALVIN KLEIN (brief notes about vintage perfumes)

 

In this post, we will analyze the old batch codes and clues from the boxes, bottles, and stickers that were necessary to correctly identify Calvin Klein perfumes from the very beginning.

(Note:Here are few notes reported by Andre around 2014. This is a transcript of a phone call to Piatigorsky, who had worked with Calvin Klein perfumes years earlier. These notes were supposed to become a full-fledged article later)

"Piatigorsky appears willing and friendly on the phone -he took pity on my poor English- and has some informations to share about Calvin Klein. He says he worked for many perfume brands, (including Calvin Klein) in Paris and London, during the Nineties and 2000s. Calvin Klein perfume business started in USA in 1978, but arrived in Europe many years later, at beginning of  the Nineties. The main remembering he has about Calvin Klein scents is they were "marketing masterpieces".  

He says that, basically, the most interesting thing about Calvin Klein are not "perfumes", but the incredible story behind the perfume brand: "Calvin Klein Cosmetic Company". Piatigorsky tells me the story. 

Briefly, at the beginning Calvin Klein launched his first women's perfume, named simply "Calvin Klein", which was not successful. Disappointed by this experience, he put the perfume division ("Calvin Klein Cosmetic Company", or CKCC) up for sale, at a very low price. Then, a small Minnesota company called "Minnetonka", which had become famous a few years earlier for the creation of pump-dispenser soap, decided to buy CCKC in 1980, and, a few years later, bet everything on a soon-to-be-released perfume, called "Obsession". (continue...)

RALPH LAUREN vintage perfumes guide

Batchcodes, boxes, labels and everything you need to identify old and discontinued Ralph Lauren perfumes.

(Foreword: these are the notes relating to Ralph Lauren perfumes that Andre left. These notes should have become a complete post, but instead they remained in a raw state. Please consider that no one of us has any idea who "Saunders" is; he is probably a friend who worked at L'Oreal. - all pictures taken on the net, and added later)

About Calvin Klein: Saunders suggests to ask Piatigorsky, OK. I asked Saunders if he remembers anything about the Ralph Lauren batchcodes or methods for dating vintage RL perfumes. Saunders says he remembers just a few things, many years have passed and he has vague memories. The situation was very messed up with RL perfumes. Saunders remembers a couple of stories that clearly explains the situation they were in.... here it is: at a certain point dealing with "Ralph Lauren Polo Sport Women", they found themselves faced with three, four different batchcodes.  These batchcodes had become so confusing and incomprehensible, thus they had to change batchcodes (this aspect needs to be explored further ).

The other story: at a certain point in the production of "Polo" and "Safari for Men", there was a stock of old stickers and boxes left. Well, they continued to use them until ran out. This means that the batchcode was up to date, ...but the labels on the bottle (and/or the box) were from 5-6 years old: i.e, stickers were outdated.

Really confusing. (to investigate further.).

Saunders says the scent he remembers best is Polo Crest, because he worked on the marketing personally. Polo Crest: launched in 1991, discontinued in 1999, and underwent a reformulation in the middle. OK.

Decoding JEAN-PAUL GAULTIER vintage perfumes.

Jean Paul Gaultier vintage perfumes: all you need to know, from old batchcodes to new labels and boxes. 

(note : this is the RAW version written by Andre in June 2016; pictures added later )

There are literally dozens of versions of the main perfumes by Jean Paul Gaultier ("Classique", "Le Male", etc). Since most of the perfumes are "Limited Editions" and/or "Special Editions for Collectors", it can be quite easy to know the year of production. Otherwise, you have to use to some tricks.

A letter from an ex-CHANEL employee (decoding the old CHANEL batch codes).

(Well, here it is. One of the most important article Andre tried to write.  Never been able to post it as an article, so we post it as "unfinished". The keypoint is How to date Chanel perfumes produced in the world, with apparently impossible-to-decipher batchcodes. Luckily we found an old -now retired- Chanel employee who explained us how to solve the mistery: Chanel used five different batchcodes in the same time! 

Please pardon us, received first in French, then translated in italian, re-traslated in English. last corrections dated June 2016. A few pictures added later for a better comprehension) 

"Hi Andre! 

I received your request through our mutual friend XXXX (...) You ask me if I can help you in decrypting the Chanel batchcodes that were used during the 70s, 80s and 90s around the world. Actually, many years have passed, I worked in the Chanel factory in New Jersey too, well, many years ago! but I still remember something (...) I read your article on Chanel 4-numbers batchcodes, yes, it's correct, it shifted month-by-month and repeated every 8 years (from 00 to 99, then restarted). Well, in America -and outside Europe- the situation was a bit different, codes were partially based on the French ones or completely different, and now I will try to explain how Chanel batchcodes worked.

Chanel codes are so difficult to understand for a simple reason: we used FIVE DIFFERENT BATCHCODES at the same time. If you don't understand how they work, you are lost. So, the first thing to be aware of is to recognize the different types of code. 

The amazing thing is that you will eventually discover how easy it is to understand and use. At the end you will be able to date every perfume! Let's start!

A Chanel Egoiste guide for collectors.

.

(We are going to illustrate here the notes taken in 2015, relating to an article about Chanel Egoiste "...to be published in future". It can be fragmented and incomplete, nevertheless we think that even after so many years the information provided can be useful for many enthusiasts and collectors. Enjoy the reading.

Old friends from Raiders of the Lost Scent)

LANVIN PERFUMES: a guide.

In these short posts we want to present the latest unfinished articles, written in the years 2015 and 2016. We thought it was right to publish everything, even those notes that would become full-fledged articles. No changes have been made, the writings are in their raw state and therefore still incomplete.

(last script: May, 2016)

"How to recognize Lanvin perfumes"  

"Jeanne Lanvin: 

to amaze her daughter, 

amazed the world".

(Louise Valmorin)

Here's an attempt to illustrate another historical brand, one of the greatest in perfumes during the XX century, at the same level of Dior, Chanel, Patou, Guerlain, and one of the few to proudly produce its own perfumes in its own factory: it's Nanterre, located in the north of France.
Lanvin ceased operations in 1989, and with almost no first-hand sources to investigate, we at RotlS were lucky to found an old retired worker from "Lanvin Italie" (it was the Lanvin subsidiary in Milan, Italy), who gave room to his rememberings since the end of 1950s. So, no "batch-codes" here, but a bunch of old stories. 

It's enough to summarize a glorious story indeed.  

A DRAKKAR NOIR guide for collectors.

In these short posts we'd like to present the latest unfinished articles, written in the years 2015 and 2016. We thought it was right to publish everything, even those notes that would become full-fledged articles. No changes have been made, the writings are in their raw state and therefore still incomplete.

A tribute to Drakkar Noir, by Guy Laroche.

                                                            (last script: March, 2016)

Drakkar Noir, created in 1981 by Pierre Wargnye at IFF, launched the following year by Guy Laroche Parfums, was one of the most iconic perfumes of the 1980s. 
Actually Drakkar Noir was a flanker of "Drakkar", launched in 1972; it was the first time a flanker had a much greater success than the original. 
Drakkar Noir was one of the most famous scents of the 80s, for having begun the massive use of the chemical substance dihydromyrcenol in perfumes. Dihidromyrcenol smells like a "laundry detergent", and the success of this scent was overwhelming, backed in 1988 by Cool Water by Davidoff, built around the same molecule.
One of the little known aspects of this perfume is that it had many reformulations over the years, but the most famous and rare version was the first, and for a specific reason. When it was created in 1981, patchouli still was a predominant ingredient in perfumes. The second version (i.e. the first reformulation) created in 1989, almost completely removed the patchouli, considered too "1970s vibe", and left only a woody background. 
In doing so, however, the scent was "distorted". 
Only a "fresh, woody, clean scent" remained. When you compare the first version of Drakkar Noir with the following ones, the difference is enormous, especially in the "base notes" and drydown.
The first version of Drakkar Noir was really a *great* scent.
So, let's go in details:

A letter from an ex-Guerlain employee: more Questions and Answers.

You will probably remember the post about the letter written by the old Guerlain employee. Well, through a mutual friend we sent him a letter with seven more questions concerning the old Guerlain fragrances, and we got the answers.
Keep in mind, before reading: we do not want to break any copyright and, most importantly, everything is based on ancient memories, so there is no evidence of what we are speaking of. You can agree or disagree. 
But it is a wonderful and engaging reading.... 
Enjoy!
Laura


Here are the Seven Questions:

1- Why did the name suddenly change from "Extrait" to "Parfum" on certain old bottles?
2- Can you remember any of "reformulations" occurred in ancient times?
3- What exactly was the old "Parfum de Toilette"?
4- Can you tell us something more about the old "batch-codes"?
5- What can you say about the strange "110ml Eau de Guerlain" bottle?
6- Does a change in the box automatically mean a change in the aroma?
7- What's the difference between 85° and 85%?


And here are the answers.
(please note it was translated from French to Italian, then again to English)

OPIUM, the Greatest: a guide for collectors.

"It will be the Greatest, and we will call it Opium"

(Yves Saint Laurent, 1976)

Sexy, Sultry, Seductive, Successful: it's Opium. After Samsara, this is my second tribute to wonderful scents of my youth: this time we talk about the Greatest one.
This article is divided in 7 parts:

- Opium at a glance
- Box and bottles through the years.
- Bottles "Year-by-Year"
- The Advertisements
- The Flankers
- The Opium Universe
- Tutorial Pics

I tried to make some sort of "Opium encyclopedia". Enjoy it!