smelling salts

from WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006)

smelling salts
    n 1: a pungent preparation of ammonium carbonate and perfume;
         sniffed as a stimulant to relieve faintness

from The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Smelling salts \Smell"ing salts\
   An aromatic preparation of carbonate of ammonia and, often,
   some scent, to avoid or relieve faintness, headache, or the
   like.
   [Webster 1913 Suppl.]