An Egyptian presence in Roman York?
A small glass bottle excavated at Tanner Row in York 40 years ago has been identified as a kohl bottle – a type of eye make-up container that was very common in Roman Egypt, but is extremely rare outside this…
cosmetics
The discovery of the Narmer Palette
The Narmer Palette may be regarded as the world’s first historical document, recording the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt in about 3000 BC.
Bronze Age lipstick
What is it? This small, intricately decorated cylindrical vial, measuring 6.7cm long and 1.9cm in diameter, is made of a greenish chlorite-schist and contains a deep red cosmetic mixture believed to be lip paint. The container, which comes from Iran,…
Hilary Wilson on… Mirrors in Ancient Egypt
Mirrors, as we know them, did not exist in ancient Egypt, so what did the elite use to check their elaborate make-up?
Battle Elephants and Flaming Foxes: animals in the Roman world
Review by Chris Epplett Over the past few years, there has been an increasing number of books and studies written on humankind’s interactions with and exploitation of the natural world. The book under review, drawn from the author’s background as…