VIII. Gay Games Cologne 2010

An Italian spring morning in Cologne – 300 years of Eau de Cologne


When the French occupied Cologne and the Rhineland at the end of the 18th century, they brought radical administration changes to the politically encrusted city. The address system was changed and all houses in Cologne were numbered consecutively. A house in the Glockengasse got the number 4711. This house number was the origin of a brand, which obtained fame far beyond the limits of Cologne. A perfume was produced in this house, named “Koelnisch Wasser” or Eau de Cologne as known worldwide. Who has invented it? It was an Italian, who had nothing to do with the Glockengasse: Giovanni (Johann) Maria Farina, born 1685 in Piemont. “My scent is like an Italian spring morning in the rain” Farina described his in 1709 developed essence. Oranges, grapefruits, lemons, bergamots, cedar wood, limes and Italian blooms and herbs are used for it. Within a very short time, people just grabbed his invention out of his hands.  The parent company today is a well visited museum in front of the “Wallraff-Richartz-Museum” in the old city of Cologne.  The well honored Farina died in Cologne in 1766 and was buried on the Melaten – cemetery.