Clay Face
Honolulu, Hawaii
Leviathan (Barrister & Mann) whispered florals adrift on an ocean of coffee, smoke, & leather
Leviathan, first recorded in the oldest books of the bible, is commonly translated from Hebrew to English as ‘whale’. But the scent of this soap seems to have no connection either with these graceful sea creatures that spout and splash outside my back door, or with the ominous beast of Old Testament lore, which, it is said, will swallow all the world’s wicked on the last day. Instead, when I smell this soap, I get a picture of a crumbling rust belt diner in some winter month early in the 1970s. The windows are fogged with soot and steam, the ragged Naugahyde stools are cracked, ashtrays brim with cigarette butts, and stale coffee has been spilled across the counter. The flowers in the vases are all wilted.
Leviathan, to me, is not a beautiful scent, but it’s certainly evocative.
Leviathan, first recorded in the oldest books of the bible, is commonly translated from Hebrew to English as ‘whale’. But the scent of this soap seems to have no connection either with these graceful sea creatures that spout and splash outside my back door, or with the ominous beast of Old Testament lore, which, it is said, will swallow all the world’s wicked on the last day. Instead, when I smell this soap, I get a picture of a crumbling rust belt diner in some winter month early in the 1970s. The windows are fogged with soot and steam, the ragged Naugahyde stools are cracked, ashtrays brim with cigarette butts, and stale coffee has been spilled across the counter. The flowers in the vases are all wilted.
Leviathan, to me, is not a beautiful scent, but it’s certainly evocative.
