Description
Based on the common themes that run throughout various ancient formulas for the Egyptian incense that was burned to welcome the night, this version of Kyphi is a 100% natural mix of resins, essential oils, and absolutes, a liquid version of the incense formula that can be worn as an uplifting and offbeat perfume and is especially well suited for meditation, yoga, or other activities that require concentration. The nose behind the fragrance is Ellen Covey. Kyphi is available as a parfum extrait or EdP and features notes of frankincense, myrrh, benzoin, labdanum, beeswax, spikenard, henna, lemongrass, wild orange, calamus, cassia, cyperus, saffron, juniper berry, and spices. Kyphi was launched in 2011.
prassyTop – :
Strong, bitter opening with lemongrass, juniper, nard, bitter orange and frankincense dominating. Mostly linear, but as it develops on me the frankincense fades a bit and the nard increases, with a dusty/earthiness in the background. At times the lemongrass does swerve a little too lemon-cleaner, but overall it’s an interesting take on the incense genre and doesn’t smell like the million other incense scents. It’s dry, herbal, rooty, resinous and incense-y, but not smoky or too headshoppy. It smells best in warm weather and a little too acrid/dusty in winter. Not sweet at all. Good longevity and projection.
Today when I wore Kyphi, my boyfriend said “mmm what is that? smells good. smells ancient!”, without me telling him the scent’s concept. I think he likes it better than me though. I like the mid-point of the scent when the bitter opening has calmed and the frankincense is shining, before the dusty basenotes come forward. Overall – interesting but not for me.
Snegok – :
You have to order from the Olympic Orchids website
surikm1946 – :
kyphi rests on a bare bone structure comprised of lemongrass, resin and cinnamon. i’m a fan of all three and there’s a minimally musty mystique to it all. i get the crypt association in the way that it’s more damp than fresh.
being so natural, the scent is very physical, with a direct impact on the senses. in that way it’s very grounded, even sexy – if a temple’esque sense of the semi-divine appeals to you. unisex – but to me it has a warm maternal goddess energy. quite wiccan even but wearable none the less.
натька – :
I was expecting something a little more scary. A familiar opening with lemongrass, fresh and zingy. I love Lush and they love this note, so this feels familiar and comforting rather than alien and spooky. It is very green on application. It is also very bitter orange and herby. Then spicy, cinnamon-ish notes. It dries down to a mild Frankincense scent. Again a lot more tame than I expected. I love incense and juniper and bitter, fresh greens. This does not even have the acrid, sharpness of most cypress and incense perfumes. I do not even get a dry, dusty feel…more vegetal and soft. It reminds me of the pips of a bitter orange, when you crush them. I am not disappointed, however, if you want a good, fresh incense, here it is!
dfw320Unlogrere – :
If you have ever been in an underground cave, it’s usually eerily cool and there’s no breeze. . .
That’s what Kyphi feels like. But it’s not merely earthy and cold — it’s sacredly disturbing. The spices and resins have an extremely particular dank smell that seems to linger in the air. I find it startling and borderline unwearable, but certainly not in a bad way. I envision being in an egyptian mausoleum with nothing but torchlight to illuminate everything. It’s a superbly chilling scent, but it’s quite well done and worth a try if you’re into the weird.
Scent: 9/10
Sillage: 7/10
Longevity (based on my skin): 9/10
Wearability: 4/10 (It’s creepy, so I don’t fancy spraying this in the evening. I agree overall with ‘drugstore classics’ review)
anher – :
I only get strong frankincense and lemongrass. That’s it. Nothing more, nothing less. It’s not bad, bu not the unique blend I was looking forward to.
I will have to try this a few more times.
—
After wearing this out, I find it to be a suitably unique blend for warm weather. The lemongrass-frankincense combo now smells a little deeper and more resinous, but still feels fresh, and even a bit nose-clearing. Very wearable, IMO.
I may have under-applied( I’m using a dab sample) but it had little sillage; though, I smelled it wafting off my neck onto my face for ~7 hours.
—
I am now smelling the spicier facets, in addition to the frankincense and lemongrass. A beautiful juxtaposition of deep resins and spices, and crisp citrus. Completely and wonderfully unique and wearable. Great longevity for a natural fragrance, as well, with ~8 hours in heat and humidity. Average throw, though.
To those that dislike this- feel free to give me yours! ☺
zhenya6615 – :
Kyphi is startlingly unlike any perfume I have tried, and so much so that at first I really didn’t know what to think of it. I didn’t get a full sense of it in even the first hour, so I think to be fair you have to devote some time to this one. That said, the first hour was challenging for me, but I’m glad I didn’t scrub it off, as it settled into something interesting. I have difficulty verbalizing a description beyond “resinous and spicy”. If you seek a fragrance unlike anything else, this may be your juice.
Others have spoken here of tomb-like scents, but I have not been to the pyramids and I don’t get anything like putrefaction or ancient must from this. It is very distinctive and I’ll try it again and come back if I can give more specifics beyond very unusual and very interesting”.
Tigr68 – :
OH MY WORD.
I see now why people have such various reactions to Kyphi. Mine was closer to a recoil than a mere reaction, and this is why:
It really DOES remind one of an ancient tomb, complete with embalmed mummies, stale air, and dust!
The only thing missing is the smell of death itself… and it’s not hard to imagine here. I left this on to develop for as long as possible – until it became unendurable, in fact. In spite of spikenard, myrhh, and spices, the effect is not rich or comforting in any sense of the word. Pungent, Cold, and Musty come to mind. Authentic, Amazing, and Otherworldly also!
Appearances to the contrary, I’m Genuinely Pleased to have tested such a ground breaking scent, another of Ellen Covey’s remarkable achievements. Time travel in a bottle INDEED. Even if now I know for certain this is not where I personally will be traveling…. 😉
Quality – five stars
Wearability – perhaps two? ( Merely my opinion. )
Shock Value – Top Notch… a good SIX!
sergio12 – :
Just got this- and it’s oddly intriguing to me- very resinous and a little sharp- I detect some clove in there somewhere- its definitely not something you wear out on a romantic date, but it really speaks to something ancient- It’s one of those I put onlate at night just for me
vampir55 – :
On me it’s clearly a warm, spicy and sticky sweet scent, almost cola-like. But there’s always that bit of incense that makes it different from plain soda. 🙂
tba999intitytek – :
This one is odd and a bit unsettling. To me it smells almost exclusively of frankincense. I can’t say I quite like it but it does seem to have a calming effect and I like to wear it when fragrance phobes are present because it is so unlike what they think of as fragrance. The dry down is quite pleasant and the staying power is impressive.
viktoras the – :
I wanted to love this one – as I do most incense perfumes. However I didn’t get any incense notes! On my skin, this smells exactly the same as “Liquid Smoke” – the cooking additive that you use to give a smokey ham flavor/scent to a pot of bean soup. On me it is awful!!
Agifssill – :
My girlfriend likes this a lot. I think it smells like a toilet and I tell her so whenever she wears it.
agrilaapora – :
I like this very much, but it doesn’t last more than 1-2 hours before it’s gone entirely. So sad. It opens with really strong lemongrass. It could definitely double as mosquito repellant, as they hate that smell (not an insult, just the truth–I like lemongrass!). The lemongrass soon subsides a bit to bring out a lovely frankincense/woodiness. This is the stage I love–there is a juxtaposition between the earthy jatamansi and honeyed incense. I get just a faint touch of spice that remains in the background and will not overpower.
I just wish it lasted on my skin! I like that it is 100% natural, but not sure I could stand having to re-apply every other hour.
Update: I really enjoyed the naturalness of it, so I bought a bottle. I do spray frequently, but that’s ok with me for this one.
Mishail33 – :
I get warm and dry spices from this one. Lots of cardamom and saffron! I can also smell the nard quite strongly against a backdrop of incense and resins. Very nice and, for me, very wearable!
nafanail – :
183) The lost Ark
A scent of historical value for all the Indiana Jones of perfumery.
To give a description other than technical (myrrh +incense+natural labdanum) I’d say it’s like taking an ancient pottery in a museum and travel through the different smells that impregnated its porous surface. A form of amber-ification of perfume, in this case rather notes captured in clay.
For meditation and imagination it must be very interesting to wear, as an aesthetic thing I would direct you straight to the beautiful Salamanca of the same brand.
Un parfum à valeur historique pour les Indiana Jones de la parfumerie.
Pour donner une description autre que technique (myrrhe+encens+labdanum naturel) je dirais que c’est comme prendre une poterie antique dans un musée et voyager à travers les différentes odeurs qui ont imprégnées sa surface poreuse. Une forme d’ambre-ification du parfum, dans ce cas ci plutôt des notes capturées dans la terre glaise.
Pour la méditation et l’imagination ça doit être très intéressant, pour porter comme une chose esthétique je vous dirigerais directement vers Salamanca de la même marque.
jkhm – :
For me, I get a great opening, my first thought was WOW, that went away quickly, the opening is very short, in fact, this is the first wear, I cant really remember the opening. I’ll have to pay closer attention next wearing.
The drydown is for me, Cinnamon, and some sort of watermellon rind, or cucumber type of cool/fresh watery kind of smell.
This is totally wearable, it isnt really that strong either, its going into my rotation, I am a fan of Myrrh and I know its lurking here, but really I have this kind of balancing act between a warm cinnamon and a cool cucumber.
ENCUMMAUNCORN – :
I had a high level of anticipation before I first smelled Kyphi. I was totally surprised by the oddness of the scent. Odd is a good word for this perfume, but there are many other modifiers that also could apply like curious, compelling, engaging…and beautiful.
But wearable? On my first skin test, I wasn’t certain that it could be worn in the living world. In fact, I’m still not certain Kyphi would be welcome in some company. A great deal would depend on the wearer. Would the incense perfume lover come to love Kyphi?
It is not a typical incense/resin perfume. Yes, frankincense (warmed, not burned) with all its complexity is the dominant base followed by a chorus of velvety myrrh, sweet benzoin and slightly vegetal labdanum. Yes, it has the delightful warm, comfort quotient, but there are other components that are in accompaniment. And these keep the balmy concoction from settling on the wearer like a familiar soft blanket. There are new and strange and wonderful and lifting ingredients that draw you in and cause you to explore why you want to like a fragrance so unfamiliar.
For Kyphi is absolutely greater than the sum of its parts. Honey flavored spices float above the resins. Cinnamon is present with a hint of cloves. Lemongrass injects its greenness and a gentle rasp of citrus. I sense rather than actually smell the juniper signature. Spikenard is an unfamiliar note to me, but based on the desciption, it could easily be the unidentifable resiny, sweet, vegetal that makes Kyphi so intriguing.
It took three wearings (the most recent today) for me to come to feel comfortable in Kyphi. In fact, I believe I do feel like a FB is in my future. Who knew?
alexeyromeo – :
This is more of an honest attempt at recreating the ancient incense in a fine perfume format than it is an attempt at a fine fragrance based on the incense. This is fine, since there are already many, many fine fragrances that are based on balsamic-resinous incense mixtures, the best being (in my opinion) Youth Dew.
What this has that the others don’t (besides a 100% natural composition) is an uncompromising position to transport you. It’s not designed to be pretty (and it isn’t), it’s designed to be a spiritual link to the past.
The thing I sense in this composition over all other components is calamus. Just under this is a frankincense and myrrh accord adorning a rich, waxy base with just a tinge of lemongrass.
It is recommended for meditation, and I think that’s pretty appropriate. The sillage isn’t huge on this one, but longevity is great. This would be pretty difficult to pull off by all except the most absurdly goth individual.
teslo – :
Disappointing! It is so disappointing that I find so many interesting perfumes on this side and can´t try them because I am not able to find them here…
I am not deterred by the negative reviews here. They make me even more curious about this stuff.
I actually like to burn a Kyphi incense mixture from time to time. But the Kyphi I got contains rose as well, so I was kind of confused I can´t find it in the main notes. But while burning it the rose isn´t really noticeable, so that´s okay with me.
Will take much research to find and try it, I guess. -.-
Prozub – :
This is my absolute favorite of the Olympic Orchids fragrances I have tried.
Although I tend to love all fragrances with prominent incense, I’m the first to admit they often smell the same. Kyphi is extremely unique, and I will be purchasing a full bottle ASAP.
Frankincense is one of my favorite smells in the world and it’s done extremely well here. Backed by dark, resinous myrrh, beeswax, bitter orange and earthy, dirty spikenard it’s just wonderful.
Earthy, sweet, bitter, resinous, smoky, dark, rich. Love.
xxxxknopka – :
This scent is W-E-I-R-D….Weird! I guess im the odd man out. I actually like this. I tried Arizona, Olympic Rain forest, and Kingston Ferry but this one so far is my favorite. Finally!!! I found a Orchid scent with longevity and decent projection. I would love to get this in a extrait. I think this scent is a little misunderstood. I appreciate what Ellen aimed to do with Kyphi. You have to be quite the eclectic individual to come up with this sort of concoction. It takes guts to “go left” and be cherished in this niche arena. Im convinced this was made for a select group of people.
EscapeD – :
this one is really offensive to my nose.
it is as if you are in a pyramid tomb room with the body not appropriatly embalmed.
the scent is strong and long lasting.
would not recommend this to a friend.
binia2377 – :
Horrible. Like an oil can spilled over canvas.
Not for me.
mixa766 – :
Not for the faint hearted, I cant help but agree with the reviewers below. If you are thinking to buy this then don’t be disillusioned by the description, I would *strongly* recommend you buy a sample before you purchase a bottle of this.
This one is not for me. I love spices and resins and the lemongrass in this is noticeable and lovely. But beyond that I can’t help but be repelled by this fragrance. Theres something sweet and familiar, yet repulsive behind this fragrance and I could never conceive myself wearing this anywhere or using it for any other purpose. There is something in this disturbingly familiar to my nose. I don’t know anything about Egyptian tombs, but spent much time in my life nursing, and to be perfectly frank it reminds me of the smell of certain terminally ill patients in end stage and their rooms, the smell of sickness and sweat, and the overlay of incense to mask something sinister. I apologise in advance if that description offends anyone, I found this fragrance borderline offensive to my nose and thats what it most closely reminds me of. I am aware that it may be a situational association for me, however that did nothing for my opinion of it. I scrubbed this one off before the hour had passed, I couldnt stand it.
polygon – :
Kyphi has been likened on other sites to the smell of an ancient Egyptian crypt. My first impression of Kyphi was it reminded me of something from my pantry. I can’t pinpoint exactly what, but maybe it is a mixture of the smell of dried goods, old candles and maybe some very old stock cubes that are past their best.
People, do not have any illusions of wearing this on a date. It is not remotely attractive or even mysterious. I have never smelled the inside of an Egyptian tomb, but I suspect Kyphi has nailed it.
iropuphogue – :
King’s valley sepulchres… I don’t want wear it, but deja vu is beautiful:)