Prince Matchabelli: American Fragrance by the Georgian Survivor of Soviet Repressions

Many of those in the world, who are addicted to the amazing odor of the American Prince Machabelli perfumes, dont know that this perfume line would have never been created if not for the horrible repressions in Georgia by Bolsheviks.

When I was a kid, my grandmother used to tell me stories about her repressed father Ivane Matchabeli and his cousins. Ivane Matchabeli and other representatives of this noble surname were shot by Bolsheviks during the Red Army invasion of Georgia. However several survived and left Georgia before the "Witch Hunting of the Georgian nobles overtook them. One of the survivors was Prince Georges Vasili Matchabelli, creator of the magic perfumes, who emigrated in the USA with his family in 1921.

After the integration to a new American life in New-York, Georges Matchabelli found himself as the talented chemist. He was previously an engineer and ambassador for the Democratic Republic of Georgia in Italy. Inspired by his biggest love, an Italian actress Norina Gilli, Matchabelli has created his first perfume Princess Norina. The second perfume Ave Maria was also dedicated to his wife.

In 1926 Georges Matchabelli established Matchabelli House, a perfume line in New-York. The couple was running an antique shop Le Rouge et le Noir in New-York City, at 545 Madison Avenue. The Prince Matchabelli perfumes, poured in the crown-shaped bottles, had been selling in that shop for several years.

The logo of the Prince Matchabelli perfume line represents a Byzantine style crown. It was a symbol of power and faith. Somehow it was an expression of nostalgia by Georgian aristocrat towards the Georgian monarchy that was associated with the independence of his homeland.

In 1928 George Matchabelli created a new perfume Georgian Queen in memory of the Georgian Queen Tamar from the 12^thcentury Golden Age of Georgia.

Some perfumes were personally created for noble clients, especially royalty: Princess Marie, Princess Nina, Prince Georges and Princess of Wales. The other clients included the Duchess of York, for whom he created a special perfume in her honor Queen Marie of Romania. Matchabelli even created a personal perfume for Mrs. Franklin D. Roosevelt called Inauguration. The king of the United Kingdom Edward VIII was devoted to Matchabelli's men's fragrances.

Since 1936 till 1993 the Perfume line Prince Matchabelli ownership has changed several times.After George Matchabellis death, his wife Norina sold the company to the perfume manufacturer Saul Ganz for $250,000. However the new owner of Georgian-American perfume line couldnt support Matchabellis perfume line more than 5 years and in 1941 the American company Vicks bought it.

In the early 50s, the new owner became Chesebrough Manufacturing Company. But it was not the last owner of George Matchabellis perfume. In 1986 an AngloDutch multinational consumer goods company bought Prince Matchabelli perfume line and it became one of the top-selling fragrances in the USA.

Nevertheless, seven years later the new American company Perfumes de Coeur, that provides fragrances for men and women and body lotions, bought Prince Matchabelli as one of the most ambrosial perfume with royal bottle design.

Cachet Perfume, Aviance Night Musk Perfume, Wind Song Perfume, Unruly Perfume, Hero Cologne all these fragrances by Prince Matchabelli was provided by Perfumes de Coeur. Nowadays it is available on Amazon.com to purchase the perfumes by Georgian diplomat and amateur chemist George V. Matchabelli.

In early 80s, George Matchabellis nephew, Ivane Matchabelli arrived in Georgia to find his relatives. He found one. It was my grandmother Mary Matchabeli. Ivane brought for her Prince Matchabelli, a perfume from their ancestor who avoided Bolsheviks repressions, who was President of the Georgian Association in the United States, and who gifted to the world the small crown-bottles, full of amazing ambrosial odor.

George Matchabelli died in New York in 1935. He was buried in Mount Olive Cemetery in Queens, New York.