Forof Essenza: Recreating the Scent of Ancient Rome

Forof Essenza, a project by Giovanna Caruso Fendi, recreates the olfactory memory of the Basilica Ulpia in Rome. Perfumer Laura Bosetti Tonatto, who previously created a fragrance for Botticelli's Venus, developed the scent using rose, amber, saffron, and incense—notes traded in ancient Trajan's Markets. The project was inspired by the loss of smell during the pandemic and aims to celebrate freedom, referencing the manumissio ritual (freeing slaves) once practiced in the basilica. The multidisciplinary program includes a docufilm by Andrea Purgatori and Lorenzo Scurati on Emperor Trajan, a site-specific installation by Janneke Leenders on 25 steps each translating the word 'liberty,' and performances by Susana Pilar Delahante Matienzo and Silvia Giambrone curated by Veronica Siciliani Fendi and Paola Ugolini. Works are on view until July 15.