Tears of the Moon Princess by Michael Nordstrand

odorous molecules | 50mL | Edition of 1

expresses and exalts the essence of the flowers of the Osmanthus tree

artist statement:

In the Kingdom of the Moon there grew a single, eternally flowering Osmanthus tree in a courtyard of crystal and silver. From its golden blossoms, an elixir was derived that could grant health and immortality to any who drank of it. Long ago, the world was ravaged by plague, devoid of hope. Seeing the devastation wrought upon the realm of mortals, the Moon Princess intervened, sending her emissary with a flask of the magical elixir and seeds of the sacred tree to ease the suffering of humanity. For her gift, the Princess was sentenced to live in a shimmering prison overlooking the world below, having only the elixir to drink so that she might think forever upon her deeds in solitude, crying innumerable silver tears that became the stars.

The cyclical nature of pandemics and recovery—of occurrence and recurrence—spoke to me from this bit of Chinese folklore. I was inspired to create a minimalist composition based on our collective intention to return to nature through personal rituals and our effort to simplify. It is always a pleasurable exercise to express and exalt the essence of a single raw material from the perfumer’s palette, and I endeavored to create a kind of ‘elixir’ of my own that would both comfort and inspire, skirting the line between an intoxicated dreaming and sober wakefulness.