That old musty dictionary is made of paper, which contains lignin. As lignin deteriorates with age, one of the by-products is a compound very close to vanillin. This is why the smell of an old bookstore is so appealing.
I’d wager the ‘pet’ in ‘petrichor’ has to do with stone and not with petroleum. My dictionary’s in the other room, out of reach as I sit here in my easy chair, so that’s why it’s only a bet.
I Gaggled “word for musty paper smell” and here’s some of what I got:
“ A team of British chemists that tested the air surrounding old books using electronic sniffing equipment described the bouquet more precisely: ‘A combination of grassy notes with a tang of acids and a hint of vanilla over an underlying mustiness.’ “ …!
( resembles petrichor with its grassy notes … yawn )
A penny cent for your nose sense. Flipping Paige’s, wafting scents. Peas pease, this is not nonsense. Just tripping the nose fantastic, chemical diffusion dispense.
I understand, Frida! (I don’t always understand Frida, though.) Pleasant though petrichor may be, the scent of the old good book is its equal if not its better. When I was a kid, and for many years, my folks had a multi-volume set of the unabridged OED, printed on thick, old, musty stock. Such a great treasure; but most unfortunately, somewhere/somewhen along the line, probably during one of our moves of domicile, it was lost or discarded (a sad fate, of unhappy memory)….
Superfrog about 1 year ago
Frida likes a smell for all seasons and not just rainy days. Leather bound dictionaries are best.
Randy B Premium Member about 1 year ago
A very specific bibliosmia.
ransomknotts about 1 year ago
petrichor. Nice!
painedsmile about 1 year ago
Frida is such a bookworm.
The Old Wolf about 1 year ago
That old musty dictionary is made of paper, which contains lignin. As lignin deteriorates with age, one of the by-products is a compound very close to vanillin. This is why the smell of an old bookstore is so appealing.
3hourtour Premium Member about 1 year ago
…book ‘em Danno…
…I saw you…
…and him…
…walking in the rain…
…I love the smell of rain in the morning…I
…it smells like…
…dead worms…
…but not bookworms…
…²ROCK:2 is my favorite dictionary definition…
…I call it squared Rock two…
…though I know it isn’t correct…
…let’s all go to electric avenue…
descabro about 1 year ago
Good word!
Mad-ge Dish Soap about 1 year ago
Left the dictionary out in the rain. We may not ever have this scent recipe again.
Mad-ge Dish Soap about 1 year ago
Funken Wagnalls smell, fills the air.
coltish1 about 1 year ago
I’d wager the ‘pet’ in ‘petrichor’ has to do with stone and not with petroleum. My dictionary’s in the other room, out of reach as I sit here in my easy chair, so that’s why it’s only a bet.
Zebrastripes about 1 year ago
Raindrops keep falling in my head…and it smells so fresh and crisp!
Howard'sMyHero about 1 year ago
I Gaggled “word for musty paper smell” and here’s some of what I got:
“ A team of British chemists that tested the air surrounding old books using electronic sniffing equipment described the bouquet more precisely: ‘A combination of grassy notes with a tang of acids and a hint of vanilla over an underlying mustiness.’ “ …!
( resembles petrichor with its grassy notes … yawn )
willie_mctell about 1 year ago
What about butyl mercaptan, H2S, or cadaverine?
6turtle9 about 1 year ago
A penny cent for your nose sense. Flipping Paige’s, wafting scents. Peas pease, this is not nonsense. Just tripping the nose fantastic, chemical diffusion dispense.
Sisyphos about 1 year ago
I understand, Frida! (I don’t always understand Frida, though.) Pleasant though petrichor may be, the scent of the old good book is its equal if not its better. When I was a kid, and for many years, my folks had a multi-volume set of the unabridged OED, printed on thick, old, musty stock. Such a great treasure; but most unfortunately, somewhere/somewhen along the line, probably during one of our moves of domicile, it was lost or discarded (a sad fate, of unhappy memory)….