To evoke Greece, a much-favoured region and essential source of inspiration for the Maison’s founders, Diptyque called on Zoë Paul, painter and sculptor of South African origin. Born in London and resident in Athens, her connections with Greece, its history and its art run deep – as demonstrated by her methods, which are focused on ancient forms and materials. For Diptyque, she travelled specially to Milies, the third port of call on our Grand Tour. “What struck me the most about the place was its profound spirituality. The church on the village square: a massive stone barn with a slate roof in the style of the Ottoman architecture of the region. Inside, the scent of incense, the gilded bas-reliefs, the mythological scenes painted on the walls by a priest from Mount Athos and the icons sparkling in the flickering light. In mythology, Milies is the home of the centaur Chiron, a healer and practitioner of herbal medicine. Following the road to the village, quite by chance I came upon Chiron’s cave. It was surrounded by laurel bushes and when I visited, little violet-coloured wild irises. Inside, the space opened out, taking on an unexpected resemblance to a sepulchre.”

The spirit of such locations inspired her to create her exclusive edition, which is limited to 15 copies: a small curtain made of ceramic beads, her signature, fired using to the traditional Japanese technique known as raku – which gives each bead a different colour and creates relief – topped with a crown made of tinware. “I wanted to blend in a form of orthodoxy specific to Greek culture, so I asked a craftsman who creates reliquaries on Mount Athos to conceive it.” The curtain’s beads form the shape of a hand, a reference to Chiron and a sacred symbol indicating care, love and art: “a part of the body I’ve always felt particularly drawn to – the hand, which fashions tools, which heals, which touches. An image of sensuality.” The Cave of Chiron is suitable for hanging or standing up, and includes a porcelain oval that gives off the fresh, warm perfume of this high-up Greek destination as captured by Olivier Pescheux, invoking cypress, fig trees and immortelles. For Zoë Paul, “perfume is a direct trigger for the memory. Its transitory quality has the power to transport us to places that are profoundly personal. It is sensual and evocative. It elevates both the beauty of nature and its wild side, and can unlock the deepest hidden places in our subconscious.”