Taking a step back from this one. I found the opening almost fougere green in a funny way. I'm not sure what is going on with this one? It's odd. More of the iris/orris dominance but it's very wet, and herbal. Strange as when you smell the headspace of this attar from the bottle (or sample vial in my case) it's incredibly sweet and amazingly lush, yet quickly on skin it's dry and unnerving to me. Not dissimilar to irisoir but enough for me to have a preference for that one.
Released in 2016
Classified as a Floral
Nose behind this scent is Sultan Pasha.
"Thebes is dedicated to a very old, discontinued composition I smelt in Paris at a certain famous establishment. It was so evocative that it was the only time a perfume brought me close to tears. As a result, I toiled for many months and many late nights to recreate it as I wanted it to be my signature perfume. And here it is... Thebes. Inspired by Djedi Guerlain." - Sultan Pasha
Top: bergamot, muguet (Lily of the Valley), aldehydes and Persian rose otto. Middle: orris butter, Bulgarian rose absolute, jasmine grandiflorum absolute and musk. Base: vetiver, amber, ambergris, musk and animalics.
Opens with a warm spicy glow with some waxy and buttery creaminess in the background, gives me a slightly marzipan vibe. As the scent develops, the waxy quality increases and a sweetness also develops, with the warm glow ever present along side it, with a touch of a gentle powderiness. The opening is mostly about the orris butter or iris, and the marzipan and the warm spicy waxy quality really reminds me of Irisior also by sultan pasha. As the scent dries down it becomes much deeper and darker, it's joined by an animalic leather accord, though the is powdery floral iris and the warm spicy touch is still at the forefront. The scent gives off a very ancient feeling, like walking into an Egyptian tomb that's just been opened.
Projection is strong for the first couple of hours after which is sits a little more closer to the skin. Longevity is around 5 hours.
Overall rating of 6/10.