Researchers confirmed recently that traces of a substance found in an over 2,000-year-old jar are a cosmetic face cream for men that was used to whiten the skin, illustrating that the desire to be physically attractive, as measured by the standards of the day, is a shared wish of both ancient and modern man.
After several years of complex analysis, six grams of residue in a delicate, sealed bronze jar found in 2017 in the grave of an ancient Chinese nobleman of the Spring and Autumn Period (770-476 BC) is thought likely to be a cosmetic, adding a significant new piece to the puzzle of early human activity, experts said.
Discovery sheds light on ancient cosmetics By SHAN JUAN in Xi an and CHEN MEILING in Beijing | CHINA DAILY | Updated: 2021-03-13 07:10 Share Remains of cosmetic face cream unearthed in Weinan, Shaanxi province. CHINA DAILY
Researchers confirmed recently that traces of a substance found in an over 2,000-year-old jar are a cosmetic face cream for men that was used to whiten the skin, illustrating that the desire to be physically attractive, as measured by the standards of the day, is a shared wish of both ancient and modern man.
After several years of complex analysis, six grams of residue in a delicate, sealed bronze jar found in 2017 in the grave of an ancient Chinese nobleman of the Spring and Autumn Period (770-476 BC) is thought likely to be a cosmetic, adding a significant new piece to the puzzle of early human activity, experts said.
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Jar Of 2,700-Year-Old Facial Cream Found In A Chinese Nobleman’s Tomb
Archaeologists who opened and searched the 2,700-year-old tomb of a buried nobleman at the Liujiawa site in northern China found something unusual . In among the long-deceased nobleman’s ample collection of funeral goods, they discovered a crusted, ornamented bronze jar that contained a soft yellowish substance that was eventually identified as facial cream. Jars of facial cream have been unearthed before inside the tombs of ancient Chinese aristocrats and other individuals of high birth. But most of these samples were found in burial spots reserved for women.
There are far fewer instances where jars of cosmetics have been found entombed alongside men of noble birth, and among this rare group the discovery at Liujiawa dates back the farthest.