Posted on 02/07/2005 5:00:55 PM PST by blam
Maximus Factor aka Ancient Avon
By Jocelyn Selim
February 07, 2005 | Anthropology
Courtesy of the Museum of London
A Roman-era container of white cosmetic cream, found during an archaeological dig in London, offers a glimpse at vanity 2,000 years ago, when a pale, even complexion apparently was the rage.
Richard Evershed, a chemist at the University of Bristol, analyzed the cream’s ingredients and recreated the ancient recipe, which consisted mainly of rendered animal fat and starch that was probably obtained from boiling grains. “It shows a surprising degree of technological sophistication,” he says, noting that the color came from a white tin oxide which was almost certainly synthetic. In Rome, a similar pigment was made by dissolving lead shavings in vinegar. The London cream, found at the far fringe of the Roman Empire, may contain tin instead because it was more locally available. Making this substitution required smelting tin, heating it at very low temperatures in open air to eliminate color impurities, and then cooling it slowly to obtain the pure white oxide. “It could not be all a home recipe because of the complex technology involved,” says Evershed. So the tin could have been obtained in from traveling merchants, or perhaps the cream was manufactured in large batches and then distributed.
Francis Grew, curator of archaeology at the Museum of London where the tin is now on display, is struck by how little cultural attitudes toward makeup have changed in the past two millennia. “There are a number of satirical literary references poking fun at how long some women took to put on their makeup or at how terrible they looked without it,” he says. “But this is the first time we’ve found the real thing.”
'Vanity of vanities, all is vanity.' - Solomon
The lead cosmetics poisoned the user. This tin-based concoction was probably safer. Of course, staying out of the sun is the best solution.
They used bean curd as a wash.
Did you hear what happened to Maybelline?
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Max factor.
I think we've covered this subject previously.
Someone would probably commercialize it and, since the recipe is off patent, will not pay royalties.
Please FREEPMAIL me if you want on, off, or alter the "Gods, Graves, Glyphs" PING list --
Archaeology/Anthropology/Ancient Cultures/Artifacts/Antiquities, etc.
The GGG Digest -- Gods, Graves, Glyphs (alpha order)
here's one:
'Roman cosmetics' found at ancient dig
Reuters ^ | Monday, July 28, 2003
Posted on 07/28/2003 7:50:10 AM PDT by presidio9
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/953807/posts
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Just updating the GGG info, not sending a general distribution. |
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