The late 1950s marked a fascinating moment in cultural history. The austerity of the war years had given way to prosperity, and with it came glamour, luxury, and an emphasis on polished femininity. Dior’s New Look had redefined fashion in 1947, with cinched waists, sweeping skirts, and an emphasis on womanly curves. By 1957, women’s wardrobes were filled with rich fabrics, cocktail dresses, and pearls, and Hollywood icons like Grace Kelly, Audrey Hepburn, and Elizabeth Taylor set the tone for beauty and elegance. Against this backdrop, a perfume called Great Lady would have appealed deeply: it suggested not only refinement, but also a certain grandeur—an aspirational identity for women who desired to embody both softness and authority.
The fragrance itself was fully in line with the oriental perfumes that dominated mid-century perfumery. It opened with soapy aldehydes and bright citrus—notes that immediately signaled luxury and modernity. The aldehydes lent a sparkling, almost effervescent quality, reminiscent of freshly pressed linen and expensive soaps, while the citrus provided an elegant freshness. This led seamlessly into a spicy floral heart, dense with tuberose, jasmine, rose, and iris, warmed with clove and other rich spices. These middle notes gave Great Lady both depth and sensuality, reflecting the opulent femininity of the era. The drydown rested on a smoky, animalic base of civet, musk, sandalwood, patchouli, ambergris, and oakmoss. Such ingredients gave the fragrance longevity and a powerful, lingering sillage that mirrored the "grand presence" suggested by its name.
When interpreted in scent, the title Great Lady evoked the idea of a perfume that was not fleeting or fragile but commanding and enduring, much like the legacy of Lady Evyan herself. It would have been worn by women who wanted to be noticed—not in a brash way, but with a refined assurance. This was the age of statement perfumes: Guerlain’s Shalimar and Caron’s Narcisse Noir still held sway, while newer creations like Dior’s Diorissimo (1956) offered delicate alternatives. In this context, Great Lady was not entirely unique—it followed the prevailing trend of rich, heavy orientals with aldehydic sparkle—but what distinguished it was its unmistakably American identity, crafted outside the traditional French houses.
Ultimately, Great Lady captured the spirit of its time: a perfume for women who saw themselves not just as companions or hostesses, but as figures of stature and refinement, deserving of a fragrance that reflected their own inner grandeur.
Fragrance Composition:
So what does it smell like? Great Lady by Evyan is classified as a rich and heavy, long lasting oriental fragrance for women. It begins with soapy aldehydes and citruses, layered over an opulent spicy floral heart, resting on a smoky, animalic base.
- Top notes: aldehyde C-10, aldehyde C-11, aldehyde C-12, bergamot, neroli, petitgrain
- Middle notes: tuberose, Bulgarian rose, phenylethyl alcohol, iris, orris root, ionones, jasmine absolute, indole, lily of the valley, hydroxycitronellal, lilial, lyral, clove, eugenol, cinnamon, cinnamic aldehyde, cardamom, and nutmeg
- Base notes: musk, musk ketone, ambergris, castoreum, oakmoss, sandalwood, patchouli, civet, labdanum, benzoin, styrax, vanilla, vanillin, tonka bean, coumarin, vetiver, myrrh
Scent Profile:
To imagine Great Lady by Evyan on the skin is to take a journey through layers of texture, color, and sensation—each note unfolding like an orchestral movement. It is a fragrance that does not whisper but declares its presence, a bold oriental construction of its time, rendered with the precision of chemistry and the sensuality of nature.
The opening strikes first with the clean brightness of aldehydes C-10, C-11, and C-12, molecules that shimmer like sunlight on cut crystal. C-10 lends a citrusy sparkle, C-11 a metallic, waxy freshness, while C-12 broadens the effect with a soapy, airy expanse. These aldehydes do not exist in nature, yet they give the illusion of immaculate cleanliness—like freshly laundered linen glowing in the morning light. They enhance the bergamot, sourced from Calabria, whose fruit yields a distinctive oil prized for its complex bitterness and effervescent green shimmer. Alongside this comes neroli, distilled from the orange blossoms of Tunisia, lending a honeyed brightness, and petitgrain, taken from the bitter orange leaves and twigs, its green, woody bitterness grounding the airy aldehydes. Together, the top notes are effervescent and sophisticated—fresh yet abstract, a signal that this perfume belongs to the world of couture rather than casual prettiness.
As the perfume warms, the heart unfurls like a heavy brocade curtain. Tuberose, creamy and narcotic, dominates with its lush, buttery bloom—an opulent flower often considered almost carnal in its intensity. Bulgarian rose, famed for its damask variety grown in the Valley of Roses, lends a jammy, honeyed depth, the richness heightened by phenylethyl alcohol, a rosy aroma chemical that extends and softens the rose absolute’s character, making it more diffusive. Jasmine absolute brings its golden, sensual radiance, infused with indole, the animalic nuance that makes jasmine smell so intoxicating and alive. Iris and orris root, dusted with ionones, add a cool, powdery elegance, violet-like and velvety, while lily of the valley sings with its dewy freshness, recreated synthetically by hydroxycitronellal, lilial, and lyral—molecules that conjure its elusive, naturally unscented bloom.
Threading through these florals is a rich spice cabinet: clove and its component eugenol, sharp and warm, giving the heart its spiced edge; cinnamon and cinnamic aldehyde, sweet-hot with a woody bite; cardamom, fresh and green, a slightly camphoraceous lift; and nutmeg, powdery and earthy, weaving complexity into the bouquet. The effect is one of grandeur: the florals are not a spring garden, but a velvet-draped ballroom, perfumed with flowers brought in by the armful and accented with the heat of spices.
The base is where Great Lady earns its name, settling into a long, smoky, animalic trail that clings to the skin with gravitas. Musk and musk ketone provide warmth and sensuality, their sweetness amplifying the human skin’s own softness. Ambergris, once harvested from the ocean, lends a salty, radiant glow, while civet adds a dark, erotic shadow. Castoreum, from the beaver, deepens this animalic undertone with a leathery smokiness. Layered over this foundation are the great resins: labdanum, with its balsamic, leathery richness; benzoin, sweet and vanillic; and styrax, with its resinous, smoky character. These resins blend with vanilla and vanillin, the latter a synthetic booster that sharpens the gourmand sweetness, alongside tonka bean and coumarin, which bring almondy, hay-like warmth. Patchouli lends its earthy, inky weight, sandalwood from Mysore provides a creamy, milky wood prized for its unmatched smoothness, and vetiver adds dry, smoky-grassy tension. Finally, a wisp of myrrh imparts a sacred, bittersweet smokiness, anchoring the perfume in ritual and memory.
On the skin, Great Lady is commanding, its aldehydic sparkle giving way to a decadent heart of spice-laden florals, finally collapsing into a shadowed base of smoke, resin, and animalics. In scent, it interprets its name literally: this is not a fragrance for the ingénue, but for a woman who wishes to embody elegance, strength, and allure—someone whose presence, like the perfume itself, lingers long after she has left the room.
Beauty as a career, 1969:
"GREAT LADY is for the cosmopolitan woman, assured, sophisticated — a bouquet of multicolor flowers with a touch of oriental spicing."
Bottles:
Available in:
- Parfum
- Cologne
- Satinglide lotion
Fate of the Fragrance:
Great Lady by Evyan was eventually discontinued, though the exact date of its withdrawal from the market remains uncertain. Records and advertising suggest that it was still available as late as 1988, but like many mid-century perfumes, it gradually faded from circulation as trends shifted and reformulations became less faithful to the original. Today, surviving bottles of Great Lady are sought after by collectors and perfume enthusiasts alike, treasured both for their rarity and for their embodiment of the bold, opulent oriental style that defined much of mid-20th-century perfumery.