Big blocks of olive oil soap have been crafted for over one thousand years in the South of France. Since 1688 French law has declared that only soaps that are produced by following certain ancient methods, and containing only the purest ingredients, shall bear the famous mark “Savon de Marseille”.
It takes the Maitre de Savon (soapmaster) two weeks to make Marseille Soap. The delicate mixture of olive and vegetable oils, alkaline ash from sea plants and Mediterranean Sea salted water are heated for ten days in antique caldrons.
Know-how passed down through the generations will reveal to the soapmaker the right moment to pour the mixture into open pits where it slowly hardens. Cut into cubes and stamped, the soaps are then set out to dry in the sun and cool winds.
Only a few savonneries (soap factories) near Marseille still make this legendary soap in the traditional manner. Experience the extraordinary purity and gentle skin care cherished for generations.
Paula it's Susan from Peddlers Home Design...loving your blog!!!!! Great info and i NEED a couple of bars of this soap!!!!!:-)
ReplyDeleteMy good friend brought me home some from Europe. I loved it and was so sad when it was gone....so nice to know a place to get it now.
ReplyDeleteActually, there is only one artisanal soapmaker remaining in the heart of Marseille - Savonnerie Le Sérail.
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