An old perfume bottle reveals what some ancient Romans smelled like
Chemical analyses of the contents of a 2,000-year-old flask found a familiar scent: patchouli
![An ancient quartz bottle with handles on either side against a black backdrop](https://i0.wp.com/www.sciencenews.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/060523_jb_roman-perfume_feat.jpg?fit=1030%2C580&ssl=1)
While the contents inside this 2,000-year-old quartz bottle didn’t smell like much when it was unsealed, chemical analyses revealed its once-heady perfume: patchouli.
Juan Manuel Román