The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1902-08-24
ANCIENT COSMETICS.
Face Painting and Amounting Is an
Art OF Almost Prehistoric Origin.

London Dressing Table.
The fashion of painting the face dates
from time immemOrial and is Of no modern
growth: therefore, the dressing, ia able of the
twentieth century woman, with its cosmet-
les and its face powders, Is really no new
thing, but since the use OF cosmetics in any
liberal degree was out of general favor for
years the lavish revival or the art or race
painting may justly be considered modern.
What first inspired women to paint
their faces is unknown, but the fashion may
have had it's origin in custom of the saw
ages of prehistoric times, who coloreG their
bodies with brilliant or dull paSteS, as the
case might be. in order to render them
selves fascinating to the women or repul-
sive to their enemies in battle. 1t is re-
corded that amid the remains of the earliest
peoples fragments OF HmOnite-a brilliant
red-and OF manganese Ore-which pro-
duced black-haVe been found and Herod-
they rub half or their body with plaster and
the other half with vermlliOn." Face
painting is believed to have been in vogue
1000 B. c., for we are told that in the tombs
of women belonging to the oldest Chaldean
civilization Jumps of black colorfng stuff.
which served to paint the eyebrows, were
found
The Bible makes several illusions to the
use of cosmetics among the women folk.
We read of painted Jezebel looking out at
a window the arrival of Jehu at JezreeI
and jeremiah, in reproving the young Jew
esses, says: I'm vain you paint the circle
of your eyes with anthony. Your lovers
VIII QeSDlSe you w e are reminded, too,
by modern writer that the author of the
Book of EnOch assures us that even before
the deluge the angel AZael had taught the
daughters of men the art of painting the
face" These Biblical illusions to the vani-
ties of women sus geSt that the modern love
of the rouge pot is too deeprooted to be
easily overcome, and may. in fact, be re-
garded as an inheritance from some Of the
earlier peoples. In the use of anthony
there was origi tally, no doubt. a motive
other than a vain one,- the eyebrows and
eyelashes being blackened in order to shield
the eyes from the dazzling light, in the
same way that Indian mothers to-day pro-
tect the eyes of their babes with kohOl.
The ancient Egyptians were great patrons
of the use of paint for toilet purposes, and
themselves with rouge Max Beerbohm, in
his Defense Of Cosmetics tells us that
Eat Rome, in the keenest time of her de-
lingOlade great ladies, according to Lucian,
did not scruple TO squander all they had
upon unguents from Arabia" The use of
rouge in Rome was originally reserved for
religious purpOSeS-to paint the statues of
the gods on festal days. In the time Of the
Caesars face painting was carried to eX-
cess by the Roman women, who tricked
themselves into greater charm by the aid of
their paint boxes. SO that it was said of
them, "twO-thirdS of the women are shut
UP in paint boxes" POppoea, the unhappy
wife of the Emperor Nero, introduced a
celebrated cosmetic known as Poppoean
paste, which was composed of bread and
-four and asses milk, and for the making
of which she kept a train of asses. The
paste was of so thick a consistency that
the face when spread with 1t was like a
plaster.