The setting: the aftermath of an unnamed catastrophe. The smell: the sweet meat smell of “just off” corpses, sloppily preserved with embalming fluids. The air fills with the uncomfortable energy of the formerly alive, transforming vitality into a haze of bilge water, metallic discharge and dried saliva. In Rigor Mortis, the mix between indolic florals, seaweed, and animalic beeswax and civet creates an emotional fragrance that needs to be discovered slowly.
All about this fragrance
Vibe check
This is a fragrance for close, private space rather than public polish: a dim room, still air, and the uneasy pull of something beautiful that has gone slightly wrong. It reads as dense, slow-moving and confrontational, with a presence that lingers like a memory you cannot quite place.
How to wear
Best worn sparingly, especially in cool weather or at night, where its waxy florals and animalic depth can unfold without overwhelming. One or two sprays are enough; on skin it will feel dense and intimate, while in air it can turn sharply medicinal and oddly sweet.
Who it’s for
For wearers drawn to experimental, unconventional perfumery with a dark floral core, animalic texture and a deliberately unsettling mood. It will appeal to those who like dense extrait strength, unusual accords and fragrances that feel more like an artistic statement than a conventionally pretty scent.
Release year
2025
Maqueda’s story
Maqueda treats perfume as narrative rather than decoration, building dense compositions around memory, place and transformation. The house leans into experimental saturation, using precious materials at high concentration to create fragrances that feel intimate, destabilizing and deeply physical.
Rigor Mortis’s concept
Rigor Mortis was conceived as the scent of the last instant: flowers and water merging into a strange microcosm, with decomposition, preservation and bodily aftermath as its imagery. The brand frames it as part of a broader exploration of organic matter breaking down and changing state.
Extra info
Maqueda Rigor Mortis is an Extrait de Parfum from the brand’s 2025 collection. It is sold in 50 ml format, and the house presents it as a fragrance of the “last instant,” with a concept centered on transformation and decomposition.
The setting: the aftermath of an unnamed catastrophe. The smell: the sweet meat smell of “just off” corpses, sloppily preserved with embalming fluids. The air fills with the uncomfortable energy of the formerly alive, transforming vitality into a haze of bilge water, metallic discharge and dried saliva. In Rigor Mortis, the mix between indolic florals, seaweed, and animalic beeswax and civet creates an emotional fragrance that needs to be discovered slowly.
All about this fragrance
Vibe check
This is a fragrance for close, private space rather than public polish: a dim room, still air, and the uneasy pull of something beautiful that has gone slightly wrong. It reads as dense, slow-moving and confrontational, with a presence that lingers like a memory you cannot quite place.
How to wear
Best worn sparingly, especially in cool weather or at night, where its waxy florals and animalic depth can unfold without overwhelming. One or two sprays are enough; on skin it will feel dense and intimate, while in air it can turn sharply medicinal and oddly sweet.
Who it’s for
For wearers drawn to experimental, unconventional perfumery with a dark floral core, animalic texture and a deliberately unsettling mood. It will appeal to those who like dense extrait strength, unusual accords and fragrances that feel more like an artistic statement than a conventionally pretty scent.
Release year
2025
Maqueda’s story
Maqueda treats perfume as narrative rather than decoration, building dense compositions around memory, place and transformation. The house leans into experimental saturation, using precious materials at high concentration to create fragrances that feel intimate, destabilizing and deeply physical.
Rigor Mortis’s concept
Rigor Mortis was conceived as the scent of the last instant: flowers and water merging into a strange microcosm, with decomposition, preservation and bodily aftermath as its imagery. The brand frames it as part of a broader exploration of organic matter breaking down and changing state.
Extra info
Maqueda Rigor Mortis is an Extrait de Parfum from the brand’s 2025 collection. It is sold in 50 ml format, and the house presents it as a fragrance of the “last instant,” with a concept centered on transformation and decomposition.