Worlds oldest (still in production) aftershave?

[Macduff]

Awesome link @FireDragon76 thanks! Also i understand that whatever formula exists today probably isn’t exactly the original that existed how ever many years ago, but i’m fairly certain that the fragrances still “smell the same.” That is, you’d never smell the current Old Spice and think it’s anything but Old Spice. Is it “exactly” the same? Maybe, maybe not. Either way, the modern versions of classic scents still are close enough to the source to recognize immediately.

 

[BigD]

Aqua Velva? Originally a mouth wash, but used as an aftershave for years. Issued to troops in WWI. Though they added a bittering agent that turned it blue during this time to get the troops to stop drinking it. Penhaligon's? But I think they are just fragrance. Listerine was used as an antiseptic (aftershave) until people started using it orally. I'm open for ideas. Clubman has a good story about their aftershave. However, I think it's just a story.

@Macduff
You seem to have asked a great question.

 

[FireDragon76]

Awesome link @FireDragon76 thanks! Also i understand that whatever formula exists today probably isn’t exactly the original that existed how ever many years ago, but i’m fairly certain that the fragrances still “smell the same.” That is, you’d never smell the current Old Spice and think it’s anything but Old Spice. Is it “exactly” the same? Maybe, maybe not. Either way, the modern versions of classic scents still are close enough to the source to recognize immediately.

The current Old Spice aftershave product had to be changed in 2016 to meet new industry requirements due to the high content of eugenol (a potentially sensitizing skin irritant).

Most aftershaves out there aren't exactly like the originals. Skin Bracer has definitely changed over the years as well. The modern stuff smells cheaper, more synthetic, and doesn't have as much oakmoss (another skin sensitizing chemical that is now regulated more by the cosmetics industry).

 

[Raissermesser]

Aqua Velva? Originally a mouth wash, but used as an aftershave for years. Issued to troops in WWI. Though they added a bittering agent that turned it blue during this time to get the troops to stop drinking it. Penhaligon's? But I think they are just fragrance. Listerine was used as an antiseptic (aftershave) until people started using it orally. I'm open for ideas. Clubman has a good story about their aftershave. However, I think it's just a story.

@Macduff
You seem to have asked a great question.

Um...I think Listerine as an aftershave was like Ivory soap for shaving. The idea was to promote it for other uses. Listerine was originally developed as an antiseptic, later sold to dentists (late 19th Century), then mouthwash. The aftershave add showed up later.

FWIW, while I have shaved with Ivory soap, I'm not game to try Listerine as an aftershave.

 

[FireDragon76]

This sounds picky, but 4711 and Farina are eau de colognes, not aftershaves. 4711 has an aftershave, but I doubt it is no more than several decades old. Perhaps people used eau de colognes as aftershave centuries ago. I have tried a few eau de colognes as aftershave, and to me at least, they don't get the job done. You could argue that eau de colognes are for perfuming the body and nothing more. You could argue that aftershaves are for healing and scenting shaven skin and nothing more. So what product was the first marketed to heal, tone and scent freshly shaven skin? Guess we need to ask Google or Quora.

Aqua Velva has to be one of the earliest mass-market aftershave products. But like was mentioned, it was originally a mouthwash.

Aftershave in the mid 20th century was actulaly a stealth way for the cosmetics industry and Madison Avenue to market fragrances to men. In the late 19th and early 20th century, fragrances began to be seen as seedy, things that people of low moral repute used. Coupled with the religious moralism of the era (the US and Britain were, after all, coming out of the ascendancy of a certain kind of politically progressive/activist, evangelical Calvinism... as exemplified by US politicians such as president William McKinley), proper women's fragrances were relegated to single flower arrangements.. and men were expected to be relatively unfragranced. Cheap women's colognes like Tabu stirred up middle America because they were associated in the mind of many Americans with French prostitutes. So aftershaves were a way to market "smelling good" to men who were more likely to associate fragrances with people of low moral character, through the supposed practical purpose of disinfecting after a shave.

 

[BigJ]

Probably Clubman. Supposedly it was started in 1810.

Still one of my favorites!!

 

[buyandhold2018]

Technically 4711 wasn't an aftershave so I'd probably say Pinaud Clubman, that's been around since 1810 I believe.

 

[FireDragon76]

Technically 4711 wasn't an aftershave so I'd probably say Pinaud Clubman, that's been around since 1810 I believe.

Edouard Pinaud was long dead by the time Clubman came around. I would guess Clubman dates to the early 20th century, because the fragrance it is based off of didn't appear until the late 19th century (Fougere Royale).

 

[Raissermesser]

Aqua Velva has to be one of the earliest mass-market aftershave products. But like was mentioned, it was originally a mouthwash.

Aftershave in the mid 20th century was actulaly a stealth way for the cosmetics industry and Madison Avenue to market fragrances to men. In the late 19th and early 20th century, fragrances began to be seen as seedy, things that people of low moral repute used. Coupled with the religious moralism of the era (the US and Britain were, after all, coming out of the ascendancy of a certain kind of politically progressive/activist, evangelical Calvinism... as exemplified by US politicians such as president William McKinley), proper women's fragrances were relegated to single flower arrangements.. and men were expected to be relatively unfragranced. Cheap women's colognes like Tabu stirred up middle America because they were associated in the mind of many Americans with French prostitutes. So aftershaves were a way to market "smelling good" to men who were more likely to associate fragrances with people of low moral character, through the supposed practical purpose of disinfecting after a shave.

Disagree. In North America, aftershaves were already long established by the middle 20th Century. This morning came across Streitenberger's Manual and Barber's Handbook of Formulas, published in 1887. The first listing is Bay Rum, followed by four different recipes. It also lists a number of colognes, including something called New Mown Hay (!). Florida Water is listed separately, and in the back are fragrances for handkerchiefs. If aftershaves weren't popular prior to Prohibition, there wouldn't have been an issue of denaturing the stuff when America was "dry."

The same with women's cologne. In Gone with the Wind, Florida Water is mentioned as an acceptable gift a woman might receive from a man. Cheap scents? No problem. Scents applied heavily? Very much so, in the same category as BO - and that applied to both male and female. There is also the issue of types of scents for men and women, and that changed over time. A good example is The Veg, originally made for Hungarian cavalrymen.

 

[Ad Astra]

I just add glycerin to 4711 and slap it on as aftershave - same for Florida Water.

Great alcohol sting and the glycerin helps the scent linger.


AA

 

[Gamma]

Pinaud was born 1810, went into business in 1830. His frags came after that.

The history of the "Veg" is, at best, a bit confusing.

I've read that Lilac Vegetal was invented post 1855 but pre 1862, but I am not convinced that "Lilac Vegetal" was used as the product's actual "name' at that point in history. I beleve it was actually named Extrait Vegetal, Lilas de France. The first occurance of the moniker "lilac Vegetal' that I found was during the 1920s.
I've read that Pinaud's Lilac Toilette Water was exported to the USA in the 1880s as Lilas de France; I have seen an advertisment from that time-frame showing a bottle labeled as such. But I have not seen an advertisement for Lilac Vegetal from the 1800s. An 1893 listing in a Marshall Field's catalog lists Lilas de France but not Lilac Vegetal. I've also seen a mention of "Extrait Vegetal Lilas de France" in the booklet for the 1904 St Louis World's Fair. I have also seen a post-1904 advertisment for Extrait Vegetal, a product to be used after shaving. However, the oldest magazine advertisement for "Lilac Vegetal" that I've been able to find was from the 1920s, and the bottle was also labeled Lilas de France as it is today. Apparently, there was a reformulation of that product in the early 30s. I can only assume that there were other reformulations since 1865 also. Given what I have seen thus far, it appears that the branded product "lilac Vegetal' was first seen in the 1920s.

Part of the confusion is that vegetal are a 'thing' - they're a Toilette Water with glycerine added. So Extrait Vegetal Lilas de France, may have been a type of lilac vegetal, (maybe an extrait/parfum instead of a tw?) but it seems that the name Lilac Vegetal didn't appear until the 1920s.

The Clubman product line came much later, maybe 1940s.

The myth about Aqua Velva being a mouthwash originally was removed from Wiki in 2014 because there was no (zero) reliable evidence to support that claim, and there are very early 1920s advertisements calling it an aftershave. It seems that all of the online references to the mouthwash story seem to have been born from the original Wikipedia story, which has since been amended.
Given the alleged patent date of 1917 for AV, I have to give it the nod for being the 'oldest' AS still on the market - but that's the US market. There could be older stuffs from other countries out there.

 

[BigJ]

Pinaud was born 1810, went into business in 1830. His frags came after that.

The history of the "Veg" is, at best, a bit confusing.

I've read that Lilac Vegetal was invented post 1855 but pre 1862, but I am not convinced that "Lilac Vegetal" was used as the product's actual "name' at that point in history. I beleve it was actually named Extrait Vegetal, Lilas de France. The first occurance of the moniker "lilac Vegetal' that I found was during the 1920s.
I've read that Pinaud's Lilac Toilette Water was exported to the USA in the 1880s as Lilas de France; I have seen an advertisment from that time-frame showing a bottle labeled as such. But I have not seen an advertisement for Lilac Vegetal from the 1800s. An 1893 listing in a Marshall Field's catalog lists Lilas de France but not Lilac Vegetal. I've also seen a mention of "Extrait Vegetal Lilas de France" in the booklet for the 1904 St Louis World's Fair. I have also seen a post-1904 advertisment for Extrait Vegetal, a product to be used after shaving. However, the oldest magazine advertisement for "Lilac Vegetal" that I've been able to find was from the 1920s, and the bottle was also labeled Lilas de France as it is today. Apparently, there was a reformulation of that product in the early 30s. I can only assume that there were other reformulations since 1865 also. Given what I have seen thus far, it appears that the branded product "lilac Vegetal' was first seen in the 1920s.

Part of the confusion is that vegetal are a 'thing' - they're a Toilette Water with glycerine added. So Extrait Vegetal Lilas de France, may have been a type of lilac vegetal, (maybe an extrait instead of a tw?) but it wasn't named Lilac Vegetal until the 1920s.

The Clubman product line came much later, maybe 1940s.

The myth about Aqua Velva being a mouthwash originally was removed from Wiki in 2014 because there was no (zero) reliable evidence to support that claim, and there are very early 1920s advertisements calling it an aftershave. It seems that all of the online references to the mouthwash story seem to have been born from the original Wikipedia story, which has since been amended.
Given the alleged patent date of 1917 for AV, I have to give it the nod for being the 'oldest' AS still on the market - but that's the US market. There could be older stuffs from other countries out there.

Great history! Thanks!

 

[FireDragon76]

You see lilac water in old westerns. It was their equivalent of deodorant spray, I guess.

 

[Mr. Bonney]

People have been putting up with The Veg for that long? Yeesh...

Maybe it scared away the werewolves. lol

 

[SucKO]

"Lanman & Kemp Barclay,[2] Florida Water was introduced by the New York City perfumer (and founder of the original company) Robert I. Murray, in 1808. " "The company states that their product, now sold under the Murray & Lanman brand, still uses the original 1808 formula, and that the current label is also a slightly modified version of the 1808 original. "

This is from the wiki. Grain of salt not included.

Have a Great One Everyone!

 

[FarmerTan]

"Lanman & Kemp Barclay,[2] Florida Water was introduced by the New York City perfumer (and founder of the original company) Robert I. Murray, in 1808. " "The company states that their product, now sold under the Murray & Lanman brand, still uses the original 1808 formula, and that the current label is also a slightly modified version of the 1808 original. "

This is from the wiki. Grain of salt not included.

Have a Great One Everyone!

Thanks!

 

[Scaramouche]

My vote for Caswell-Massey #6, (Dr. Hunter's Cologne #6) 1789 as a mass-produced product - but not marketed or used as an aftershave until much later.

 

[Macduff]

Have to say this has been quite an interesting thread. Thanks for all the responses and the history! I picked up some 4711 aftershave and love the scent but can say without question it has the least staying power of any aftershave. I think i’ll get the cologne because i like the fragrance so much. The aftershave will be good for spring or summer when i don’t want something heavy.

 

[AimlessWanderer]

I picked up some 4711 aftershave and love the scent but can say without question it has the least staying power of any aftershave.

That's why I like it. I use aftershave for the skin, not the scent. If I want a scent that lingers, I'll use Eau de Toilette

 

[Macduff]

That's why I like it. I use aftershave for the skin, not the scent. If I want a scent that lingers, I'll use Eau de Toilette

For me it’s a combo of both. I appreciate all types though and the 4711 is a great scent and very light. It’ll be something i use regularly in the spring and summer.