His annual Perfume Bottles Auction has become the IYKYK event on every collector’s calendar; at last year’s sale an original 1921 Chanel No. 5 flacon sold for a record-­breaking $72,000.

It completely dwarfs “Chanel No. 5: The Perfume of a Century” (White Star, 64 pages, $16.95) by Italian journalist Chiara Pasqualetti Johnson, a slight, thin book that includes a small ...

4. It has a universal pop-culture appeal. From Marilyn Monroe saying a few drops of Chanel N°5 was all she wore to bed to Andy Warhol’s silkscreens of the bottle, its popularity is unparalleled.

Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel revolutionized the fragrance industry when she debuted her very first perfume, known as Chanel No. 5, in 1921.