2008 News Archive - Holidays - World's oldest perfume found on Cyprus
21 03 2007
A team of archaeologists have found a collection of the world's oldest perfumes on the sunny island of Cyprus.
Believed to be more than 4,000 years old, the perfumes contain extracts of rosemary, pine, coriander, and lavender.
Kept in tiny translucent bottles made from alabaster, the perfumes were found on the picturesque southern part of the island, Pyrgos.
The bottles were discovered in a 43,000 square-foot facility, believed to be an ancient perfume-making facility.
Maria Rosa Belgiorno, the leader of the Italian archaeological team, said: We were astonished at how big the place was.
"Perfumes must have been produced on an industrial scale."
Cyprus has long been a popular tourist destination and is ideally suited in the eastern Mediterranean.
The island has predominately hot, dry weather, except in the Troodos Mountains, where during winter, a ski facility is operated.
Cyprus is considered a transcontinental island and has Greek, Turkish and British influences.