Olfactory studies, or the anthropology of smells, is an important field in modern humanities, as evidenced by this book, dedicated to the history of olfaction in Western Europe during the modern era. What bizarre, dangerous, and foul-smelling concoctions were used several centuries ago for beauty? How did artists manage to convey fragrance and stench in painting? What immodest verses did poets dedicate to intimate parts of the body? How did sensual animal perfumes give way to plant-based ones, and how did doctors try to combat the plague with the help of strong aromas? The book by leading French cultural historian Robert Muchemble, author of the studies 'Orgasm' and 'Essays on the History of the Devil,' convincingly demonstrates that the classification of odors depends largely on the cultural attitudes of different eras and that olfactory perception is subject to the same transformations as aesthetic criteria in art.