A study of diverse cosmetics from the Tang dynasty

Abstract

In this study, cosmetics from the thousands of tombs of wealthy non-elites living in the capital of the Tang dynasty (618–907) in China, were comprehensively analyzed. One moisturizer was identified as ruminant fat with a small amount of Brassicaceae seed oil, which is easier to spread than ruminant fat in the cold, dry winters of northern China. This indicates that the recipe of the moisturizer had been optimized. Two organic residues in shells were identified as color cosmetics, one made from a mixture of vegetable oil, moths, and plant extracts, and another was from a mixture of rosin and plant pigments. Meanwhile a piece of graphite ore was used as an eyebrow cosmetic, and a mixture of cinnabar and animal glue was used as a lipstick or blusher. However, no white cosmetic powders were found in the thousands of Tang tombs. These findings suggest that the cosmetics were diverse and made from a wide range of raw materials, including plants, animals, and minerals, during the Tang dynasty in China.