“This collection embodies my personal philosophy that honesty and integrity will inevitably create something beautiful“

-Elizabeth Moores, founder and perfumer, Papillon Perfumery

Papillon Perfumery Salome was the fourth release from Papillon Perfumery, created by perfumer and the brand founder, Elizabeth Moores. Liz has the awe inspiring accolade of having had all three of her first ever perfumes nominated for a UK Fragrance Foundation Award. That’s an incredible achievement.

So expectations were high for any future releases after such accolades and nominations, Liz must have felt “Difficult Second Album Syndrome”, at some point, but as it turned out, she had nothing to fear. Papillon Perfumery has a fiercely loyal cult following from those who recognise its genius.

Salome is both beautiful and disturbing, like its namesake. This is a daring toe in the water. Salome was never going to be mainstream. If we want mainstream, we know where we can get it. This is the special “If you like that, I’ve got something round the back you might appreciate” sort of perfume. It has a dark side.

Here are the notes: jasmine, carnation, Turkish rose, Africa stone, patchouli, bitter orange, oakmoss, styrax, bergamot, orange blossom.

Here’s what I got from it: This is like opening a bottle of perfume that hasn’t been opened since the 1930s. It smells vintage already. It has that dark smoky richness that makes you sigh with pleasure. There is jasmine and orange blossom in among some dried leathery tobacco-think Caron Tabac Blond rather than cigarettes. Then the whiff of sex comes out like an animalic siren call. A shiver of styrax brings to mind that jolt that lust gives you, but the blending is so seamless that you can’t tell where one affair starts and another ends. And if there’s an overlap? Tant pis.

Salome is from another decade, another century, even. It makes me think of a time when smoking was de rigeur, when women wore aged fur stoles and when perfumes lasted days on a dirty neck where soap never reached. Anais Nin would have worn it.

Salome is rich, glorious, vintage, sexy and dark. It has a hint of crotch, and evokes crumpled sheets on a double bed. It’s the walk of shame at dawn wearing yesterday’s knickers and carrying your shoes in your hand. I loved it so much, I put it in The Perfume Companion.

In case you’re still not convinced of its powers, it was used to stimulate Bengal Tigers as part of their sensory enrichment in Marwell Zoo. They loved it too. Wear with caution, this stuff is pure animal.

Where to buy it

Salome is available from the Papillon website, which also does a Discovery Set. Papillon is also stocked at Les Senteurs, where you can purchase a sample, too. Check out the Papillon website for further details of stockists in Europe.

Disclosure

Liz Moores kindly sent me a sample of Salome just before it launched. My opinion of it, and my decision to review it, are both my own. A version of this article first appeared on my earlier blog site. I have updated it for 2026