Beneath the frescoed ceilings of Santa Maria Novella’s historic perfume shop in Florence, visitors encounter a legacy that traces back to Renaissance Italy. Although modern fragrance is often associated with France, Florence’s role as the birthplace of contemporary perfumery remains significant. During the Middle Ages, Tuscan monks specialized in extracting aromas from flowers and herbs cultivated in their cloister gardens, blending scent with medicinal and religious practices.

One of the shop’s signature fragrances, Acqua della Regina, recalls a recipe created for Catherine de Medici in the 1500s. According to Alice Montano, a manager at Santa Maria Novella, the perfume was designed to shield Catherine from the less refined odors of her new home in France. The perfumery itself, once part of a monastery, passed into private ownership after state confiscation in the 19th century and was acquired by an Italian investment firm in 2021. Today, it serves as both a retail space and a cultural landmark for visitors.

For those seeking a deeper understanding of fragrance, the Villoresi Museum of Perfume offers an educational experience focused on the raw materials and compositional techniques behind scents. Founded by master perfumer Lorenzo Villoresi, the museum showcases natural and synthetic ingredients and illustrates how these combine into perfumes’ base, heart, and top notes. Villoresi, who began as a student of ancient philology before becoming a renowned perfumer, describes scent creation as inspired by memories, myths, and personal experience. He also highlights the decline of Florence’s artisanal fragrance community, including the dwindling number of master perfumers and related crafts such as glassblowing and leatherwork.

Several other historic and contemporary establishments maintain Florence’s aromatic heritage. Farmacia SS Annunziata 1561, founded by a 16th-century spice merchant, produces perfumes and cosmetics influenced by the city’s artisanal past. At the Antica Spezieria Erboristeria San Simone, dating to the 1700s, herbalist Fernanda Russo continues the tradition of blending plant-based products, drawing inspiration for fragrance lines from Florence’s streets and history. Meanwhile, Aquaflor, a family enterprise established in 2009 and located in a Renaissance palazzo, offers unique scents that evoke the city’s natural and cultural landscapes, such as the Boboli Gardens.

Not all local scent associations are as pleasant, according to Luca Fisichella, a master perfumer near the Pitti Palace, who humorously identifies Florence’s defining aromas as “steak and urine.”

For visitors interested in crafting personalized fragrances, several Florentine shops offer workshops ranging from group classes to private sessions. One such experience at Profumior, co-founded by perfumer Sileno Cheloni, involves blind smelling tests and guided composition. Participants select and blend aromatic essences, with expert input on proportions and balance. The resulting perfumes can be customized with hand-carved marble stoppers and personalized labels.

This enduring tradition of fragrance, rooted in Florence’s rich cultural and artisanal history, continues to attract locals and tourists alike, merging ancient techniques with contemporary creativity.