Smith College Museum of Ancient Inventions: Cosmetics and Perfumes (2024)

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Smith College Museum of Ancient Inventions: Cosmetics and Perfumes? ›

Cosmetics and Perfumes, Egypt, 10,000 BCE

Egyptians mixed colored minerals with oils on stone palettes to make lipstick and blush. They used crushed malachite for green eyeshadow and crushed ochre for reddish eye shadow. They also used red ochre on the cheeks and lips.

Eyeliner, Egypt, 4000 BCE

The earliest archaeological evidence of the use of cosmetics can be traced back to the urban civilizations of the ancient world. In southern Iraq and in Egypt, men and women alike painted kohl around their eyes to make them look larger as well as to protect them from the evil eye.

Ancient lipstick recipe include crushed insects

Ancient Egyptians extracted red dye from a fungi called focus-algin, iodine and some bromine mannite which resulted in serious illness. Cleopatra made her lipstick from crushed carmine beetles and ants. In England, lip colouring became popular again in the16th century.

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.

Which perfumes were most popular in ancient Egypt? The most widely known is Kyphi, made with frankincense, aromatic resins, saffron, raisins, wine, honey, myrrh and cinnamon. The recipes remained secret, because this scent was used to honor the gods and was burnt in Egyptian temples.

There are plenty of coins surviving with Cleopatra's portrait on them, and they generally repeat the same features that seemed to astound reporters: a prominent nose, sloping forehead, sharply pointed chin and thin lips, and hollow-looking eye sockets.

Some researchers think that a reason that everyone wore makeup in ancient Egypt was that they thought it helped protect them from the gods Ra and Horus. Egyptians also used cosmetics for their alleged healing powers. They lined their eyes with black eyeliner. So yes they also wear it and this idea came here too.

Predominantly worn by the elite of Egyptian society, wigs served a dual purpose: they signaled high rank in Egypt's strict social hierarchy and helped protect shaven scalps (a sign of nobility) from the sun. Wigs also helped maintain hygiene levels by reducing the incidence of head lice.

In Greek dress, she would have worn a chiton, a type of tunic made from a single piece of fabric that was draped and pinned around the body. In Egyptian dress, she might have worn a kalasiris, a close-fitting linen garment adorned with jewellery and embellishments.

What did Cleopatra use on her lips? ›

Cleopatra's red lipstick was crafted from unconventional ingredients that were readily available in her time. The rich red pigment was derived from crushed carmine beetles and ants, which were mixed with beeswax or gum Arabic to create a smooth, creamy texture.

Much like how makeup among other things is used to signal various messages, the ancient Egyptians wore makeup to signal their social status. Cleopatra was said to have used a lipstick that was a red color that was obtained by crushing carmine beetles and ants.

5,000 years ago, the Egyptians created the primogenitor of all eyeliners: kohl. Invented to protect the eyes from the sun and sand, it later became a beauty trick to highlight the eyes. Cleopatra used it to create her famous “cat's eye.” Khol was made from vegetable charcoal and applied with a wooden stick, a meroued.

For example, Ancient Egyptians had a way to wash their hair with a mix of water and citric juices. The citric acid dissolves the fatty oils from the hair and leaves the follicle sealed.

The ideal of beauty in Ancient Egypt was considered a tall, slender brunette with a small chest and wide shoulders; not thin, with a muscular body, narrow hips, and long legs. Ancient frescoes depict women with smooth skin without a single hair.

Washing: The ancient Egyptians washed their hair regularly, using a variety of natural ingredients such as olive oil, rosemary, and honey. They also used a variety of scented oils and perfumes to keep their hair smelling fresh.

They rouged their lips and cheeks, stained their nails with henna, and lined their eyes and eyebrows heavily with kohl, a dark-colored powder made variously of crushed antimony, burnt almonds, lead, oxidized copper, ochre, ash, malachite and chrysocolla, a blue-green copper ore.

Unfortunately, there is no clear inventor of makeup to give our gratitude to. We know that the first record of using makeup comes from ancient Egypt, but there is no one particular person credited with this invention.

According to discoveringegypt.com, “They combined soot with a lead called galena to make the ointment Kohl. Egyptians also made green eye makeup by combining malachite with galena to tint the make up.” Galena, an ingredient used in Kohl, is a type of poisonous lead.

Most commonly, they used a brush made from the Salvadora persica tree. They would also use a small stick to apply the kohl to their eyes. They often used a pad to apply powders to their face, and they used a reed with a piece of red ochre clay attached to the end to paint their lips.