Cigalia by Roger et Gallet c1910

Cigalia by Roger et Gallet: launched in 1910.

Fragrance Composition:

So what does it smell like? It is classified as a floral chypre fragrance for women.

• Top notes: bergamot, geranium
• Middle notes: Florentine iris, Bulgarian rose, lily of the valley, heliotrope
• Base notes: amber, sandalwood, vetiver, vanilla, oakmoss, labdanum, patchouli, tonka, tobacco

Bottles:

It's fabulous Art Nouveau bottle was made by Rene Lalique in four sizes. The tapering rectangular bottle molded with a frosted winged locust at each corner, the lozenge-shaped stopper molded with stylized branches, the bottle was then given a cold patination in green stain. The flacon was packaged in a similarly decorated wooden box. It is noted by Marcilhac that the smallest bottle of Cigalia was not signed by Lalique, so don't be alarmed if your little bottle doesn't have a mark. Four versions of this design were made for Roger et Gallet, the first three dating from 1923 being smaller and of squarer form.


The Spur, 19

"For La Cigalia, the stopper of bottle has the lines typical of grasshopper or locust's wing and each corner of the flacon is cut out to represent a locust with his long wings folded and looking for all the world as though he were trying to prove his resemblance to a lady of the smart set wearing a brand new opera cloak of narrow silhouette cut from a fabric with an etched design."

  

A sumptuous powder box was made up of clear and frosted crystal, each corner of the lid is molded with a cicada whose wings stretch down to the base of the powder box.

Similarly decorated was a small pot de creme, which is a very rare find.

Cigalia was also available as a luxurious scented soap, colored a rusty brown and molded in the shape of two cicadas facing each other. This luxe soap was housed in a decorated wooden box, in the same manner and the perfume flacon, and the soap rested on a bed of crumpled silk.

Fate of the Fragrance:

Cigalia has been discontinued for many years, it was released for a limited time as eau parfumee in 1967, it was discontinued shortly after reintroduction and remains a rare find today.