Publication details

VTERE FELIX – Experimental production of cosmetic substance according to ancient Roman pattern

Authors

PUKANCZOVÁ Alena

Year of publication 2019
Type Appeared in Conference without Proceedings
MU Faculty or unit

Faculty of Arts

Citation
Description The pursuit of beauty and "perfection" has been accompanying humanity for centuries. These two abstract concepts represent something different to each nation in all historical periods. In the ancient Roman world, white skin was the main measure of not only women’s beauty. This study presents an experimental production of a "lightening" cosmetic substance, whose recipe was created based on the archaeological sources and a few references by ancient authors. Here, I present a brief excursion into the study of gender roles and attitude towards the cosmetic tradition in the ancient Roman world, focusing on iconographic documents and mentions by ancient authors, of which Publius Ovidius Naso appears to be one of the main actors with his work Ars Amatoria. The main point of the study is the presentation of cosmetic substances made by me and the presentation of difficulties with the selection of raw materials used in its production.
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