A Little Aromatherapy History

René-Maurice Gattefossé

The story of René-Maurice Gattefossé begins in 1881 in Lyon, France. He was the third child of five siblings and was immersed in the world of perfumes from an early age. His father, Louis, founder of Établissements Gattefossé in 1880, was a representative of foreign companies manufacturing essential oils, petroleum jelly oils, drugstore products, and raw materials for perfumery. René-Maurice studied chemical engineering at the University of Lyon and very quickly joined the family business.

On July 25, 1910, while working in his laboratory, he was splashed with boiling essence from a round-bottomed flask that had exploded and burst into flames. His head and both hands were very badly burned.

At this time, burns were treated with oil-rich "tulle gras" dressings. When his wounds started to give off a gangrenous odor, he remembered that the lavender growers had told him that burns could be healed with lavender essential oil. He took off his bandages and coated his skin with lavender oil. The results were astounding. Two days later, his fever eased, and his infection disappeared, while his wounds healed relatively quickly without a trace. He was literally saved from a potentially fatal case of gangrene.

For René-Maurice, this personal experience confirmed the hypothesis that lavender essential oil had wonderful antiseptic and healing properties.

Profoundly changed by this experience, René-Maurice embarked upon a new mission: To convince the medical world that this therapy was truly effective. He dedicated much of his time to studying the beneficial chemical properties of lavender essential oil, naturally developing an interest in lots of other essential oils along the way. He then embarked on a series of experiments in hospitals, first military and later civilian.

~Borrowed from the Gattefosse Foundation.  

Dale's note: Gattefosse is considered the father of modern aromatherapy and is attributed with coining the word, "aromatherapy."