The Hong Kong Jockey Club Series: Fragrance of Time — In Search of Chinese Art of Scent

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The Chinese fragrance culture has a profound and extensive history. For thousands of years, fragrances have permeated through studies, chambers, palaces and temples, serving as both a medium for worshiping ancestors and deities, and as a means to enrich the daily lives of ancient people while facilitating their spiritual pursuits.

The practice of burning firewood and offerings in ancient times is believed to be the origin of the Chinese culture of fragrance. Apart from religious worship, fragrance was also widely used in everyday life since the Pre-Qin period. People wore aromatic sachets, bathed in scented water, infused their clothes with aroma from burnt incense, and even built houses with fragrant wood. Fragrances were thought to repel pests and ward off impurities, and be conducive for cultivating one’s spirits.