MORTAL SKIN

Mortal Skin is the eau de parfum created by Stéphane Humbert Lucas, the first fragrance in the Snake Collection, launched in 2015. It is a unisex amber woody fragrance that tells the story of a snake's lethal seduction in three acts.

The Fragrance

Mortal Skin grows out of an idea of hypnosis. The snake on the bottle slowly approaches its prey, captures it with its gaze, strikes, and the venom spreads in a contrast between suffocating heat and glacial cold. It's no coincidence that the fragrance went through around two hundred adjustments before reaching its final version: Stéphane Humbert Lucas wanted that ambiguous feeling, seductive and threatening at once, to genuinely come through on skin, not just in the story.

How It Wears on Skin

The opening is dark and almost tart, with blackberry, saffron and cardamom intertwining in an entrance that feels more mineral than sweet. The heart opens onto sandalwood, opoponax and iris, a powdery, resinous passage that softens the initial fruity note. The base closes on labdanum, musk and grey amber, in a warm, balsamic dry down, with an almost leathery nuance noticed by several reviewers. More than one person describes it as an almost narcotic, hypnotic experience, one that keeps bringing your nose back to your wrist to rediscover it. Longevity varies from skin to skin, with real accounts ranging from 5 to over 12 hours.

Who We Recommend Mortal Skin For

Suited to those looking for an amber woody fragrance that's genuinely out of the ordinary, not the usual safe choice. The contrast between the dark fruity opening and the resinous base makes it especially interesting for those who love compositions that take time to understand, rather than those looking for an instant verdict on first spray.

Fragrance Characteristics

Our Take

In our boutique, we simply love it, no reservations. Mortal Skin never leaves anyone indifferent, and it's exactly that ability to keep bringing people's noses back to their wrist, as many who try it describe, that makes it one of the most fascinating fragrances in the entire collection.

Similar Fragrances

Incense, iris and opoponax return almost identical, but here the base warms into tobacco and leather instead of grey amber and musk: Oro 1920 by Bois 1920

Myrrh, incense and opoponax are the same shared heart, shifted here into a purer, more spiced and resinous register, without the initial fruity component: Berbera by Nissaba

Saffron and dark fruit open in a similar way, but here the base turns toward warmer leather and woods instead of cold amber and musk: Art 1920 by Bois 1920

FAQ

Is Mortal Skin a dupe of, or similar to, another well-known fragrance?
This is a genuine question that circulates among enthusiasts online, but there's no clear consensus: some compare it to dark, resinous fragrances from other brands, but no single direct comparison gathers shared agreement from the community.

Why do some sources mention "pure parfum" instead of Eau de Parfum?
At its 2015 launch, the fragrance was presented and described by some as a high-concentration parfum; the version sold today, including on our store, is a 50 ml Eau de Parfum.

Product Information

Brand

Stéphane Humbert Lucas

Name

Mortal Skin

Concentration

Eau de Parfum

Size

50 ml

Olfactory family

Amber Woody

Perfumer

Stéphane Humbert Lucas

Launch year

2015

Made in

France