Guerlain is paying homage to its most distinctive flacon.
The French perfumery house has joined with glassmaker Aristide Najean to honor the 170th anniversary of its bee bottle with a fantastical Murano glass limited-edition flacon housing the brand’s Le Bouquet de la Mariée fragrance.
Launching May 1 on Guerlain’s website, it incorporates sculptural flowers flecked with 24-karat gold, delicately arranged to appear as though they are pouring out of the flacon; like with the original iteration, golden bees adorn the exterior. The center of the bottle displays the date April 30, 1853 — the day the bee bottle was born.
Ten engravable limited-edition flacons will be released, each retailing for $27,000.
“Just like Guerlain, [Aristide] loves nature more than anything, and so flowers were a no-brainer for both of us,” said Ann Caroline Prazan, Guerlain’s director of art, culture and heritage.
After immersing himself in the brand’s history — as well as that behind the Bouquet de la Mariée fragrance itself, which incorporates notes of orange blossom, musk and vanilla, and is inspired by a bride on her wedding day — Najean brought the first flacon from ideation to execution in seven hours.
“When I imagined the bride’s bouquet, I saw flowers entering the bee bottle, generously overflowing. [Le Bouquet de la Mariée] is a striking fragrance that I associate with the gesture of the ‘chosen one’ as the bride launches her bouquet, and it was important to me to recreate this unique, magical, happy and eternal moment [through the bottle design],” said Najean.
Source: WWD