Jen Sofia Perfumery

Introducing our latest summer scent with a hint of jasmine, ilang-ilang and rose. A sweet and lasting perfume inspired by Dior

"Perfume is the art that makes memory speak"
- Francis Kirkdjian

oil based perfume in a royal inspired roll-on bottle

15 ml

"A woman's perfume tells more about her than her handwriting." — Christian Dior

Edralf and Jerose wedding
May 3, 2026
wedding giveaway
by Jen Sofia Perfumery

Edralf and Jerose wedding
May 3, 2026

Unleash your manly energy with our Deo Volente Eau de toilette
pour homme by Jen Sofia

The perfume Catherine de' Medici took to the French court in 1533 is still sold in Florence today.

The Officina Profumo-Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella has been at this address since 1221. When Catherine de' Medici left Florence at 14 to marry the future King of France, the friars of this building made her a perfume to take with her — Acqua della Regina. It was reportedly the first perfume in history made with an alcohol base, which is why it lasted and traveled in a way no perfume before it had.

That perfume is still on the shelf today. And this building is one of the most extraordinary things you can walk into in Florence — for free.

WHAT IS INSIDE

Frescoed ceilings. Antique wooden cabinets. Ceramic apothecary jars from the 1500s. Original copper stills in the back rooms. Handwritten recipe books that are still in use.

There is no background music. No screens. No promotional display. The rooms look the way they have looked for three centuries and the air smells like rose water, dried herbs, and citrus — the same things the friars were distilling 800 years ago.

Walk through before you buy anything. There is a museum inside the same building — original production workshops, a 14th-century sacristy, 18th-century rooms with stucco sphinxes and golden eagles on the walls. It is free to walk through and most visitors to Florence never find it.

WHAT TO BUY

ACQUA DELLA REGINA — €85 (100ml)

Italian citruses, petitgrain, neroli, lavender. Fresh and light. The Officina describes today's version as their homage to Catherine de' Medici's original 1533 fragrance — the lineage is unbroken even if the exact ancient formula is proprietary.

Also available as a scented wax tablet for around €15. Flat, light, fits in any bag, perfumes a drawer for months. Buy this if you do not want to carry a glass bottle.

ACQUA DI ROSA — €30

Distilled rose water. The friars were making this during the Black Death. Every Italian family has had a bottle of this in the house for generations. Toner, face mist, pillow spray — it works for all three. One of the best value purchases in the building.

POT POURRI — €20 to €35

In their recipe archive since 1828. Real dried flowers, botanicals, and resins — not synthetic fragrance. Put it in a room and it releases scent for months. The best gift from this building for someone who already has everything.

MELOGRANO SOAP — €12

The pomegranate line is the most recognizable in the house. Dense vegetable glycerine soap that lasts three times longer than commercial soap. Buy several. Nobody is disappointed.

ALCHERMES LIQUEUR — €25

Scarlet liqueur: sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and dried crushed beetles that give it the extraordinary color. Recipe unchanged since 1749. Used in traditional Florentine desserts — zuppa inglese, schiacciata alla fiorentina. The one product in this building that needs a story when you give it as a gift. It is a good story.

HERBAL LOZENGES — €8

At the pharmacy counter, not in the main display. Not marketed at tourists. Digestive lozenges made to the original friar formula. A tin costs €8. The most honest thing in the building — it is what this place was built to make in 1221.

SCENTED WAX TABLETS — €12 to €18

Flat, hand-pressed wax discs in Acqua della Regina, Melograno, rose, and iris. Perfume a wardrobe drawer for months. The most giftable thing in the building — beautiful, unusual, and completely flat in your luggage.

THE PRACTICAL INFORMATION

Address: Via della Scala 16, Florence. Less than five minutes on foot from Firenze Santa Maria Novella train station.

Open every day, 10am to 7pm. No appointment. Walk in.

Products are online and in 75 shops worldwide at the same prices. But you can only stand inside a frescoed former chapel that has been selling the same things for 800 years if you are in Florence.

Go.

Thank you for your recent purchase Boss Maye. We’re thrilled you chose our inspired version of Light Blue to be part of your signature style. Wear it in good health and stay fragrant!