Local products - Capri - Carthusia Profumi

A fascinating story circulates around the origins of the first perfume to be produced on the island of Capri. Legend has it that back in 1380, an unannounced visit to Capri by Queen Giovanna D'Angio prompted the Father Prior of the Carthusian Monastery of St Giacomo to quickly arrange a large bouquet of flowers in her honor using all the most beautiful island flora. After three days, the water in which the flowers had been placed had acquired a scent the notes of which were quite unknown to the prior. With the aid of the Father Alchemist he was able to trace the source of the fragrance to the "Garofilium Sivestre Caprese", which was to become the very first perfume of Capri.

A less romantic, but just as fascinating, version is supplied by written documents which record how, in 1948, the Prior of the Charterhouse discovered the ancient formulas for a number of perfumes and, with the Pope's permission, revealed them to a chemist from Turin. This able scientist subsequently produced the scents from the small laboratory which he named "Carthusia".

The same methods once used by the Carthusian monks are still employed for the production of the Carthusia perfumes. Preparations are made using only the highest quality products and the finished article is individually hand wrapped. Essence of the rosemary growing on the slopes of Monte Solaro is used in scents for men whilst women's fragrances feature essence of Capri's wild carnation.