The earliest Ancient Egyptians lived in a region of Northeastern Africa near the banks of the Nile around 3500 B.C. Yearly flooding of this fertile region carried with it wealth and plentiful harvests that rewarded its inhabitants with the ability to grow food and experiment with natural ingredients.
Often, these natural ingredients were used to craft cosmetics and special skincare preparations for beauty and religious purposes. Many ancient Egyptians lived their days as scribes, farmers, and craftsmen while others existed as nobles. Despite their differences, there was one thing that brought both social statuses together: cosmetics.
Beauty was often regarded as a sign of holiness; the act of applying cosmetics (done in both life and death) was thought to have a magical and spiritual purpose. Cosmetics and skincare were important parts of daily living for both men and women. The ancient Egyptians designed intricate wigs, shaved their hair, and began to establish much of what is considered the beauty ideal for the present-day.
Ancient Egyptians, though they rarely lived over the age of 40, concerned themselves with keeping their skin cared for. Long, hot days under in the arid desert were enough to keep the skin dry, dehydrated, and in need of nourishment. Royals were especially conscious of preserving youth, and they turned to milk, honey, olive oil, sesame oil, and castor oil to help keep wrinkles at bay.
These ingredients were commonly used in cleansing rituals, such as creams and scrubs, due to their moisturizing properties for the skin. It has even been said that ancient Egyptians valued their skincare and cosmetics so much they were sometimes received as wages. Ancient Egyptians also led the way in deodorant, using plants and incense in areas of perspiration to ward off body odor.
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Having a strong connection to spirituality, ancient Egyptians believed that cosmetics were more magical than medical. Wrinkles due to daily sun exposure were common. Everything they used had a spiritual aspect to it, including cosmetics. Both men and women wore makeup. Traders traded makeup often, especially in the upper classes.
In life, much attention was paid to the eyes, and dark black kohl eyeliner was used to emphasize the area and create a more almond-like shape. Blue and green eye paints were used with the belief that they could ward off bad luck. Who can forget the iconic image of Elizabeth Taylor in Cleopatra? Her hair and makeup made that role. In death, tombs were enclosed with religious items, one of them being cosmetic palettes.
The smokey eye makeup look isn’t a modern invention. Ancient Egyptians painted their lips, applied eyeshadow, and lined their eyes more than four thousand years ago.
Imaginary depiction of an ancient Egyptian woman applying makeup.
Using Ancient Cosmetics to Create Modern Makeup (Do Not Try At Home!)
The Significance of Cosmetics in Ancient Egypt
Beauty held significant value in ancient Egypt. Both men and women went to great lengths to appear their best, and social status was often reflected in the amount of makeup worn. In fact, statues of the Egyptian gods were adorned with the same cosmetic styles, indicating how beauty may have been associated with holiness. The beauty rituals practised in ancient Egypt were not only aesthetically functional, but held significant social and spiritual importance.
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Cosmetics also served a spiritual function. Ancient Egyptians decorated cosmetics vessels with symbols of fertility and regeneration. Elite Egyptians included makeup among their funerary objects. Egyptian hair and makeup accessories from the predynastic period to the Ptolemaic period demonstrate the spiritual, aesthetic, and practical importance of beauty.
Cosmetic Box of the Royal Butler Kemeni, ca. 1805 B.C, Middle Kingdom, Egypt Twelfth Dynasty of Egypt
Hygiene and Skincare
As with any effective beauty regime, basic hygiene was at the foundation of the beauty secrets practised in ancient Egypt. All of the sweat and sand brought about by the dry heat of the Egyptian climate needed to be washed away before anything else could be applied. To achieve this, most Egyptians seem to have bathed in the Nile, although some ancient bathtubs have also been discovered.
Some examples are the public bathhouses that have been excavated at the city of Tebtunis, the oldest of which dates to the third century BCE. In addition to utilizing sand as a scouring agent, the use of soap was also quite common in ancient Egypt. A paste composed of clay or ash mixed with olive oil could cleanse the body, as well as nourish and heal the skin.
Dating from around 1500 BCE, the Ebers Medical Papyrus describes another beauty secret of the ancient Egyptians. To keep themselves smelling clean, the ancient Egyptians used numerous perfumes derived from fragrant plants, flowers, and seeds. Their essences were extracted by squeezing, after which they were added to oil to create liquid perfumes.
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Some of the most expensive and luxurious fragrances used in ancient Egypt were derived from some of the best incense ingredients imported from East Africa. Frankincense, myrrh, and various aromatic woods were likely reserved exclusively for the gods, and possibly the very richest members of society.
Possibly one of the most famous ancient Egyptian beauty secrets is the use of milk baths as a skincare treatment. It is believed that Cleopatra herself bathed in sour donkey’s milk, as the lactic acid could exfoliate and rejuvenate the skin. A hair removal method known as sugaring also appears to have been used to keep skin smooth and hairless.
To keep the skin hydrated, a mixture of milk and honey may have been applied on a weekly basis. The use of almond, moringa, and castor oils all over the body was common for keeping skin soft, smooth, and wrinkle-free. Their use would have been an essential beauty secret in ancient Egypt.
Eye Makeup: Kohl and Beyond
Perhaps some of the most iconic imagery to come out of ancient Egypt are the depictions of Egyptians and their gods with dark, kohl-rimmed eyes. Kohl was used around the eyes by both men and women from all social classes. It was created by mixing soot with galena, a blue-grey coloured natural mineral form of lead sulphide. By using a small stick, it could be applied to the upper and lower eyelids. The use of kohl was perhaps one of the most common beauty secrets in ancient Egypt.
Not only did it have an aesthetic appeal, but it also shielded eyes against the sun and acted as a deterrent to flies. It even afforded protection against eye infections. While the high concentrations of lead salts present in the kohl can usually be toxic, the Egyptians processed and filtered the materials for up to thirty days before use.
The two main forms of eye makeup were green eye paint and black kohl. The green eye paint called Udju [3] was made of malachite, a copper carbonate pigment. The green malachite came from the mines of Sinai as early as 3000 BC.[4][5] The black eye-paint called Mesdemet [6] was made from galena, a dark grey ore. Crushed charcoal was also used in this process. The malachite and the galena were crushed and mixed with gum or water to make a paste.[7]
Mesdemet, or kohl, was used for lining the eyes and it revealed to bring along potent health benefits in the form of protection from disease, bugs and sun rays. The ancient Egyptians created a remedy for burns by mixing the cheek and lip stain with red natron, northern salt, and honey.[9] The Ebers Papyrus, a collection of Egyptian medical recipes dating to circa 1550 BC, shows the usual galena pigment could also be combined with specific ingredients to create eye paints that were intended to treat eye infection.[10]
Modern research suggests that the lead compounds found in these eye creams causes nitrogen monoxide overproduction in the body of the wearer. To finish the eye-look, burnt almonds were used to paint eyebrows darker, and a green pigment was applied to the eyelids. This green eyeshadow was created by crushing green malachite stone and mixing it with animal fat or vegetable oils. It is thought that the ancient Egyptians used this green eye makeup because they believed it had magical properties.
People of all genders wore kohl. In the 19th and 20th centuries, archaeologists and looters, many of them part of European colonial power structures, resurfaced many ancient Egyptian artifacts-for example, the bust of Queen Nefertiti. This inspired a European and American craze for all things ancient Egyptian. In Egypt and around the world, people continue to use kohl and other cosmetics, both for beauty and ritual protection.
Nefertari Merenmut, wife of Pharaoh Ramses II. Fresco, 13th century BCE
Lip and Cheek Stains
On the rest of the face, the ancient Egyptians stained their lips and cheeks with a red pigment created from ochre. Made from hydrated iron oxide, a naturally tinted clay, red ochre was mined and then left to dry in the sun. After being finely ground, it was then mixed with water and applied to the lips and face with a brush.
Cosmetic Tools and Vessels
An essential element to the cosmetics used in ancient Egypt was their associated accoutrements. Some of the most magical beauty secrets were held not just within the makeup, but also in the receptacles that contained them. Cosmetic containers are among the earliest archaeological finds from ancient Egypt, and have been depicted since as early as the First Dynasty.
Jars made of granite, basalt, alabaster, and ivory have been found at sites such as Saqqara. Residue left on these vessels have enabled archaeologists to identify the pigments and compounds used in ancient Egypt, helping us to uncover the Egyptian’s beauty secrets. Their forms and decoration may also have held special significance.
Cosmetic palettes were used to grind makeup. The earliest examples were rectangular in shape and date back to 5000 BC.[12] The palettes later adopted a rounder shape like the Narmer Palette.[13] King Narmer's palette was the earliest piece of its kind. It has decorations of the King smiting the enemies of Egypt and the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt, as well as a cavity for the grinding of cosmetics, making it a double purposed palette.
These later developed into fish shaped palettes. They might have chosen the fish shape as the fish was a symbol of resurrection and new life. Tilapia are associated with fertility so the fish-shape could also refer to that.[14] The fish shaped palettes were usually adorned with precious stones for royalty.
Fish Shaped Makeup Palette used to crush and mix different powders to create makeup paste.
Many of the later cosmetic palettes were crafted into the shape of a fish. To keep their locks silky smooth, the ancient Egyptians applied almond and castor oils. Combs made from fish bones have been excavated from numerous archaeological sites, and were likely utilised to apply the oils evenly throughout the hair.
This beauty secret had a dual purpose, however, as oils not only kept hair moisturised, but also may have helped to get rid of lice. Scraps of human hair discovered in various tombs suggest that the ancient Egyptians may also have had a penchant for wearing hair extensions and wigs.
This certainly could have been a means for keeping up appearances if someone had to shave off their natural locks. Wearing beads, flowers, ribbons, or jewellery, meanwhile, may also have been a favoured way to look stylish.
Cosmetics and their trappings were not only utilised for aesthetic purposes in ancient Egypt, but also held spiritual and ritual significance. Animal pigments were often ground into makeup, so as to imbue the wearer with the physical and spiritual powers believed to be held by that creature. Various cosmetic palettes and containers were decorated with symbols and imagery associated with rejuvenation.
The Ideal Egyptian Look
Ancient Egyptian women strived to be thin with pert breasts, while men with broad shoulders tapering down to flat stomachs were considered handsome. The body types in Ancient Egyptian art remained amazingly similar for over 3,000 years. Thin was in.
Women were typically clad in an ankle-length dress with wide shoulder straps over the breasts. The dress must have been designed to fit the figure as tightly as possible, and it may have been stylish to make it of thin material. In later periods, fashion got a bit more complex among the well-to-do. Another style that became all the rage had a sheer linen robe with accordion pleats and a small cape that crossed and tied in front of the breasts. It hung loose unless tied with a long sash at the waist.
The precious stones used to make bracelets (worn by women, boys and sometimes men), diadems, girdles, anklets and rings included carnelian, turquoise, garnet, feldspar, rock crystal, obsidian and lapis lazuli. Egyptian faience was composed of ground quartz, a colorant and other materials molded into a shape - most often a blue-green bead. Copper (for the lower class) and gold (for the upper class) were the most common metals used.
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