Le Chypre du Nil by Ciro, launched in 1924, emerged during a period of profound fascination with Egypt. This era, known as Egyptomania, was ignited by the groundbreaking discovery of Pharaoh Tutankhamun's tomb by British archaeologist Howard Carter in 1922. The world became enthralled with ancient Egyptian culture, and its influence rippled through fashion, jewelry, architecture, and, notably, perfumery. Ciro, always attuned to the cultural pulse, chose the evocative name Le Chypre du Nil—a poetic fusion of French and geographical reference. Translated, it means The Chypre of the Nile (luh SHEE-pruh doo NEEL), invoking images of ancient Egypt’s mystical landscapes, the life-giving river, and the legendary perfumed oils used in temple rituals and by queens such as Cleopatra. The name itself suggests an olfactory journey—one that marries the sophisticated European chypre tradition with the exotic mystique of the Nile.
At the time of Le Chypre du Nil’s release, the world was in the midst of the Roaring Twenties, or Les Années Folles (The Crazy Years) in France. This was a period of great social and cultural change, marked by post-war exuberance, artistic innovation, and the liberation of women. Fashion, led by designers such as Coco Chanel, abandoned restrictive corsets in favor of sleek, beaded flapper dresses and dropped waistlines, while hairstyles were shorn into daring bobs. Art Deco, with its geometric elegance and bold stylization, dominated visual aesthetics. In this glamorous and adventurous climate, a fragrance named Le Chypre du Nil would have appealed to the modern woman—worldly, sophisticated, and eager to embrace the allure of the exotic. She would have imagined herself in the perfumed halls of an ancient temple or drifting down the Nile at sunset, cloaked in a scent that whispered mystery and power.
