On 8th October 1792 a Carthusian monk gave the young entrepreneur Wilhelm Muelhens a unique wedding present: the secret formula for an "aqua mirabilis" In 1794during the time of the French occupation of Cologne, General Daurier decreed that all buildings were to be given consecutive numbers so that it would be possible to eliminate the jumble of street names and make it easier to billet his troops.

As the story goes, Wilhelm Muelhens house had the numbers "4711" painted on his door by one of the French soldiers who did not even dismount his horse.

4711 Original Eau de Cologne is one of the oldest brands and benefits from exceptional name recognition throughout the world. Users rate it as "the mother of all Eau de Cologne".

Up until the beginning of the 19th century, 4711 Original Eau de Cologne had been decanted into what were known as "Rosoli bottles". These bottles could only be stored on their sides and transportation options were therefore very limited.

Then, in 1820, the distiller Peter Heinrich Molanus invented the bottle that was named after him. Its special, six-sided design made this bottle far easier to handle, store and transport. It was also possible to affix far larger labels to it. These labels are still used to this day.

In 1822 Muelhens adopted this invention but added a curved collar piece, known as the "crop", between the shoulder of the bottle and its cap. This enables the alcohol-rich liquid to expand when it warms up. 4711 Original Eau de Cologne has been packaged in this "Molanus bottle" ever since.