4711 House of Fragrances, Cologne

If you鈥檝e ever wondered where the phrase 鈥淓au de Cologne鈥� got its start, follow your nose to the 4711 House of Fragrances鈥攑art museum, part perfume playground, and all-around aromatic adventure.

Back in the early 1700s, an Italian-born perfumer named Johann Maria Farina set up a shop in the city. He created a light, citrusy fragrance that reminded him of 鈥渁n Italian spring morning鈥濃€攁 stark contrast to the heavy, musky scents popular at the time. This he poetically dubbed 鈥淓au de Cologne鈥� (or 鈥淲ater from Cologne鈥�) in honor of his new hometown.

Farina鈥檚 creation became wildly popular across European courts as the must-have splash for royals and nobles who probably appreciated smelling like lemon zest instead of battlefield sweat. The fragrance was so successful that 鈥淓au de Cologne鈥� became a generic term for light, fresh scents.

But the story didn't stop there. Later in the century, another Cologne-based entrepreneurial wild card, Wilhelm M眉lhens, brewed up his own 鈥渕iracle water,鈥� marketing it as medicine. During the French occupation, a soldier doing a building census randomly numbered M眉lhens鈥� workshop as 鈥�4711.鈥� And voil脿鈥攖he most famous house number in fragrance history was born.

In 1810, Napoleon demanded that all medicinal products reveal their ingredients. Rather than spill the secret sauce, M眉lhens pivoted. Forget medicine鈥攖his was now officially a perfume. Smart move. He even tried to borrow prestige by buying the rights to the Farina name... except the Farina family wasn鈥檛 selling it and took him to court. So in 1881, M眉lhens finally embraced the 4711 name for good. Drama? Oh yes. But it smelled great.

Though the original building didn鈥檛 survive, the modern 4711 flagship store still draws scent lovers from around the world. Inside, you鈥檒l find a museum, antique Rosoli bottles, old-school perfume flasks, and the legendary Fragrance Fountain, which continuously flows with the iconic 4711 Eau de Cologne. And just to keep things classy, the building even serenades the street with 20 bells chiming out three melodies every hour.

Hot tip:
You can blend your own personal fragrance or simply stock up on gift-worthy scents and quirky souvenirs. Just don鈥檛 blame us if you leave smelling like royalty...

Want to visit this sight? Check out these Self-Guided Walking Tours in Cologne. Alternatively, you can download the mobile app "911爆料网: Walks in 1K+ Cities" from Apple App Store or Google Play Store. The app turns your mobile device to a personal tour guide and it works offline, so no data plan is needed when traveling abroad.

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Create Your Own Self-Guided Walk to Visit This Sight

Sight Name: 4711 House of Fragrances
Sight Location: Cologne, Germany (See walking tours in Cologne)
Sight Type: Attraction/Landmark
Guide(s) Containing This Sight:

Walking Tours in Cologne, Germany

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