Ephemera

Reboul pharmacy of Pera history

In 1895 Jean César Reboul (Jean Pierre Marie César born in Trebizonde 26/12/1870, died in Istanbul 5/3/1944 and is buried in Férikoy Catholic cemetery) graduates from the faculté française de Pharmacie de Paris and visits his father who was working as an engineer on the Eastern Black Sea road connection between Hopa and Trabzon. Transiting Constantinople he is enraptured by the city and decides to open a pharmacy on the main thoroughfare on ‘La Grande Rue de Pera’ under the name of ‘’Grande Pharmacie Parisienne’. It is the only Ottoman era pharmacy that continued to serve customers until 2014 when the local development forced a move. The pharmacy was innovative in creating special colognes and lotions from a variety of herbs using their own recipes and soon their success story spread far and wide. In 1920 Kemal Müderrisoğlu who at the time was studying in the second year of his university degree in the subject approached Mr Reboul and requested to be an intern at the pharmacy, but was rejected as he couldn’t speak French. In determination this student then attends night language classes at the French Consulate and learns the language within a year and is then accepted as the apprentice. The relationship develops and is akin to one of father-and-son. In 1936 Kemal in the laboratory in the basement of the shop manufactures Lavanda cologne with which the establishment would later become synonymous with. Among the international customers for masage and youth creams was the actress and socialite Zsa Zsa Gabor.

In 1939 Jean Reboul retires and Kemal Müderrisoğlu becomes sole owner of the business, altering the name to ‘Rebul’. The Rebul Lavanda [lavender] cologne becomes the after-shave / perfume for all the gentry of the city and beyond and the pharmacy survives the death of Kemal in 1986 by the transfer to his sons who were also pharmacists. The lavender oil was imported from the south of France Grasse region and this was often the base material for over 60 beauty products produced by the pharmacy, receiving various awards over the years.

Marriage record of Jean César Reboul and Cassandra Dimitriadi on June 28, 1904 at St Antoine church in Pera. On the marriage record his father’s name is mentioned as Laurent Reboul.

Jean César Reboul married Cassandra Dimitriadi, a Greek Orthodox. They had two children, Lucien Laurent born 5/7/1899 and Raymond César Marie born 7/1/1901 who died 30/11/1901 in Istanbul. His wa Laurent Timothée Charles Reboul born 21/9/1928 in Izmir and Marie Iphigénie Marcovich. If this the case he was Timothé Charles Marie Reboul’s brother and uncle of Yvonne Iphigénie Reboul who was married to Michel Accaoui. More on the Reboul family and their shipping activities:

Their ancestor was Alexandre Jean Baptiste Gaspard Reboul, born 4/8/1800 in Marseille who came to Smyrna/Izmir where he married 1/6/1825 Elisabeth Hélène Séraphine Tricon. They had 8 children born partly in Izmir and partly in Istanbul where the family moved in the 1830s. Alexandre Reboul died in Istanbul 6/3/1857. French merchants had to have an authorisation from the Chamber of Commerce in Marseille to settle abroad. His authorisation was given on Decembre 9, 1823 according to the Archives of the Chamber of Commerce in Marseille. He probably arrived in Smirna in 1824 and married Elisabeth Tricon, daughter of a French merchant, on June 1st 1825 in Smyrna at St Polycarpe.

Alexandre Reboul & Elisabeth Tricon marriage entry.

Laurent Timothée Charles Reboul, father of the pharmacist Cesar Reboul, was his son.

Their genealogy can be traced up to 1685 in Marseille. During the 18th and 19th century several Reboul came in the Levant, in Cairo, Alexandrie, Rosette, Salonica but they might be from different branches of the family.

Pharmacy certificate connected with this establishment: Ahmet Refik, son of Ahmet Kemal [Ahmed Kemâl bin Ahmed Refîk] is the pharmacy diploma holder [eczacı icâzet nâmesi] and son of the director [mütevelli] of the head of the foundation, dated 1908/9. So this points to a pre-Reboul association pharmacy activity for this family.

The frontage of the pharmacy shortly before the move.

Mr Mehmet Müderrisoğlu next to the sign displaying the moving date after 120 service at that location.

This forced move has been imposed on a whole number of shops in the past decade as Beyoğlu has become hot property for developers keen to convert, often controversially, whole blocks to shopping centres, with just the facades being preserved, and often floor plans and even levels permanently altered.