{"id":8844,"date":"2023-08-21T09:10:38","date_gmt":"2023-08-21T09:10:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/masterparfums.com\/?p=8844"},"modified":"2026-10-28T14:20:57","modified_gmt":"2026-10-28T14:20:57","slug":"cocottes-19th-century","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/masterparfums.com\/en\/cocottes-19th-century\/","title":{"rendered":"The Cocottes of the 19th Century"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The cocottes were women of mysterious charm who occupied a singular place in French society. These renowned courtesans played a crucial role in the influential circles of the 19th century, being by turns admired and criticised. Besides their presence in the upmarket salons and their influence on political decisions, they were also linked to the flourishing perfume industry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let us see who these cocottes of 19th-century France are from a socio-cultural point of view, their relationship with perfumery and how the brand Les Cocottes de Paris celebrates their legacy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Cocottes: Who Are They?<\/h2>\n\n\n
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Emma Elizabeth Crouch, known as \u201cCora Pearl\u201d, around 1860, a British-born courtesan.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

The demi-mondaines, the “does,” the scandalous women, the courtesans, or the cocottes: this is how the so-called women of easy virtue were nicknamed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Women of great beauty, often from modest backgrounds, they engaged in prostitution in order to raise themselves into the highest spheres of society thanks to their charm, their intelligence and their talent as artists, singers or dancers, to seduce the influential men of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They were courted by powerful figures such as writers, artists, politicians, aristocrats and even crowned heads. But it was indeed they who chose their lovers!<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Their charisma was not limited only to their ability to charm men\u2014they were also important social actors. Some of them became the confidantes and advisers of powerful politicians, allowing them to have an indirect influence on the country’s decisions. However, this privileged position also aroused controversy and moral criticism, as they were often associated with behaviours interpreted as immoral.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why Are They Called Cocottes?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The nickname “cocotte” has several possible origins.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It could come from the word “coquille” (shell), referring to their beauty and their outward charm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The most likely origin would lie in the fact that they adorned themselves with luxurious outfits, and liked to add feathers to hats, fans, hairstyles, or even directly to their dresses and bodices. These feathers added a touch of lightness, elegance and theatricality to their clothes, in keeping with their status as free, independent women. Through these feathers, they came to be nicknamed cocottes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Moreover, the term “cocotter” derives from it, since these women of easy morals perfumed themselves generously with opulent fragrances. This colloquial expression, somewhat old-fashioned and disparaging, refers to someone who has sprayed themselves with perfume excessively.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is said that the wives of unfaithful men sometimes unmasked them by smelling this strong “cocotte” odour on them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Cocottes and the Link with the Perfumery of the Era<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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