CIVET

17th December 2023

Photo credit: Ondrej Prosicky (Getty Images) CANVA

CORIN: The courtier’s hands are perfumed with civet.

TOUCHSTONE: Most shallow man. Thou worms’ meat in respect of a good piece of flesh, indeed. Learn of the wise and perpend: civet is of baser birth that tar, the very uncleanly flux of a cat. Mend the instance, shepherd.

CIVET (Civettictus civetta)

The African Civet is a cat like mammal which produces a highly sought after musk scent from its perineal glands, or as Shakespeare puts it, ‘the very uncleanly flux of a cat’.

Civet was an important ingredient of many perfumes and its still used by some perfume makers although synthetic alternatives are now available. Kirsten James highlights the Civet trade and Daniel Defoe’s unfortunate Civet Farm in London in the 18th Century. African Civets have been assessed as Least Concern in the wild.

More Information

IUCN Red List: African Civet

Kirsten James, 2019, The Civet Trade in 18th Century London. In Recipes Hypotheses