I just love Arko more and more all the time - used it today, in fact. It occurred to me to wonder if the scent has remained the same over the decades since it was first made - which I think (?) was in the 1950s. Are there any long-time Arko enthusiasts or "shaving historians" who know if the scent is still the original one?
Arko scent question
- Thread starter Jan Sobieski
- Start date
Good question. I have been using Arko for only 20 years. Yeah it's the same all along.
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It's been theorized that Arko was used by the ancient Egyptians to embalm the pharaohs. I'll tell you, some of those mummies still smell fabulous.
Mike M
...but this one IS cracked.
I think this question should be directed towards the emperor of Arkoland @FarmerTan and @Owen Bawn
I am pretty sure it's not changed one bit, according to some other thread....
Yes, the scent dates back to the 1950s when NATO was looking for a way to counter Soviet influence in Southeast Europe. Turkey was offered a membership because it straddles the line between Europe and Asia, thereby acting as a perfect buffer.
The Turks, for their part, wanted to show their appreciation by devising a way to blunt Russian incursions into the area. They started by dehydrating and concentrating kolonya (the ubiquitous lemon-scented, alcohol-based concoction loved by all Turks) and turning it into super-dense 35mm x 80mm cylinders (called "Anti-Russian Kolonya Ordnance" or ARKO for short). When any Russians tried to cross the border, the Turkish army would fire these cylinders from their Korkut/Oerlikon autocannons into the invading enemy's midst.
The scent from these cylinders was so strong that the invaders were completely enfeebled. Of course, the scent had no effect on the Turks who, as mentioned, love it. In fact, they were so enamoured with it that they often rubbed the cylinders on their cheeks, much like they would use the liquid kolonya as a cooling splash.
Soon, they found that the residue left behind was very protective and could be used for shaving purposes. Subsequently, they learned that addng a bit of water and swirling it with a brush could produce an extremely dense, slick lather. And so, ARKO shaving soap was born!
p.s. Everything that you just read was a pack of lies.
p.p.s. For the real origin of Arko's scent, you have to go back to the Roswell UFO crash in 1947. As related by member @koso in this thread, "[t]his is what the Roswell aliens must have smelled like when they started to rot"! 
- Thread starter
- #7
You know, I'm calling BS on this story. That's because I detect a subtle note of Kumquat in Arko, not this "lemon-scented kolonya" stuff.Yes, the scent dates back to the 1950s when NATO was looking for a way to counter Soviet influence in Southeast Europe. Turkey was offered a membership because it straddles the line between Europe and Asia, thereby acting as a perfect buffer.
The Turks, for their part, wanted to show their appreciation by devising a way to blunt Russian incursions into the area. They started by dehydrating and concentrating kolonya (the ubiquitous lemon-scented, alcohol-based concoction loved by all Turks) and turning it into super-dense 35mm x 80mm cylinders (called "Anti-Russian Kolonya Ordnance" or ARKO for short). When any Russians tried to cross the border, the Turkish army would fire these cylinders from their Korkut/Oerlikon autocannons into the invading enemy's midst.
The scent from these cylinders was so strong that the invaders were completely enfeebled. Of course, the scent had no effect on the Turks who, as mentioned, love it. In fact, they were so enamoured with it that they often rubbed the cylinders on their cheeks, much like they would use the liquid kolonya as a cooling splash.
Soon, they found that the residue left behind was very protective and could be used for shaving purposes. Subsequently, they learned that addng a bit of water and swirling it with a brush could produce an extremely dense, slick lather. And so, ARKO shaving soap was born!
p.s. Everything that you just read was a pack of lies.
p.p.s. For the real origin of Arko's scent, you have to go back to the Roswell UFO crash in 1947. As related by member @koso in this thread, "[t]his is what the Roswell aliens must have smelled like when they started to rot"!
