Georges V. Matchabelli

Prince and perfumer

 

Prince Georges V. Matchabelli or Giorgi Machabeli (Georgian: გიორგი მაჩაბელი) (July 23, 1885 - March 31, 1935) was a Georgian prince and diplomat, who fled Soviet Georgia and immigrated to the United States after the 1921 Bolshevik takeover of Georgia.

Matchabelli was a member of the noble family of Machabeli from Georgia, then part of Imperial Russia. He was one of the founding members of the Georgian Liberation Committee organized in Berlin in 1914. The Committee intended to garner the German support for Georgia's struggle for independence from the Russian Empire.

In 1916 Matchabelli married Norina Gilli (born in Florence, Italy) who had become famous for her portrayal of "The Madonna" in Max Reinhardt's unique 1911 pantomime spectacle play "The Miracle." He briefly served as the ambassador of the Democratic Republic of Georgia to Italy. With the establishment of Soviet rule in Georgia in 1921, Matchabelli fled his homeland and immigrated with his wife Norina to the United States. The prince was an amateur chemist and in 1924 he and his wife, now known as Princess Norina Matchabelli, established the Prince Matchabelli Perfume Company. Norina designed the crown shaped perfume vial in the likeness of the Matchabelli crown and in 1926 the scent "Ave Maria" was named for her. The company became known for color-coded, crown-shaped bottles that housed such classics as Wind Song, Ave Maria, and Princess Norina. The Matchabellis divorced in 1933.

From 1932 until his death, Matchabelli also served as President of the Georgian Association in the United States.Georges died in 1935, and in 1936 Norina sold the company to perfume manufacturer Saul Ganz for $250,000.

Prince Matchabelli ( Perfume brand )