Facticerie: The Largest Fragrance Bottle Collection in The World

From Fabergé Eggs to traffic cones, the Guinness Book of World Records has seen some incredibly niche collections over the years—and in 2022, they’re adding a new one to their list. As of June 8th, businessman and collector Sudhir Gupta’s Factice Fragrance Collection has officially been recognized as the largest collection of its kind in the world, and can be viewed at the exhibit Facticerie: The Factice Collection now open in Hackensack, New Jersey. 

But first—what is a factice? Simply put, a factice is an oversized perfume bottle made for display purposes. Sometimes filled, sometimes not, these items are rare treasures that are becoming increasingly harder and harder to find. For Sudhir Gupta, working at a perfume store after immigrating to New York from India in 1992, seeing a certain Nina Ricci Factice (pictured below) was like love at first sight. After saving up to buy it, Gupta proceeded to scout and purchase more and more factices to satisfy his passion. Today, he owns over three thousand of these factices, all well-preserved, extravagant, and precious.

But despite their aesthetic appeal, stores have moved on from using factices to advertise, instead relying on the pull of social media, celebrity, and salespeople. For Gupta, however, that makes his passion even more important. After all, the bottles are not just a manufacturer's sale tactic—each piece is a work of art, as well as a physical manifestation of fragrance history. By continuing to collect, he not only fulfills his passion, but is able to show exactly how magical and beautiful a perfume bottle can really be. 

So if you’re an avid perfume collector or maybe just like pretty things, feel free to swing by the Factice exhibition in New Jersey to get a glimpse of this new world record! You can make an appointment at their site before stopping in, or just follow the collection for more updates or tidbits here: @facticerie.