7801oa+Ancient+Civ+Report

When you think of Ancient Egypt, you probably think of pyramids, mummies, and hieroglyphics. But what did the women wear? Did they wear makeup like the women today? Egypt has a specific meaning to its name too. The people of Ancient Egypt called their land Kemet, which means black land, the color of the soil which the Nile brought each year when it flooded .This soil was important to the Egyptians because it allowed them to grow crops in an otherwise dry, hot region. Egypt was bordered by the present-day countries of Saudi Arabia, Libya, Sudan, and Israel. The seas that surrounded Egypt were the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. The Kemi or Kemetu, Egyptian people, lived from 6000 B.C- 300 A.D. You may not think that we can learn much from this culture, but believe it or not, we adopted the Solar Calendar from the Ancient Egyptians. Today, we use this 12 month, 365 day calendar to mark the days and months of the year.

An equally important and fascinating part of Ancient Egyptian culture was its fashion. Dress and decoration were important to the Egyptians because the hot climate required that they wear clothing that was as cool as possible. At the same time, however, the clothing people wore expressed their social status. Almost everybody wore jewelry of some type. The rich wore jewelry made of gold and silver, while the poorer people used copper. We can learn more about this cultural aspect by looking at the Egyptian’s makeup, clothing, and accessories.

Did you know that much of our modern day makeup originated from Ancient Egypt? The Ancient Egyptians

ere the very first people to use skin moisturizers. When you made a skin moisturizer, you used animal fat. To show your wealth or place, you would dress or wear makeup based upon your appearance and hygiene. The wealthier you were, the more makeup you wore. If you lived on a straw mattress, you wouldn’t wear makeup because you probably wouldn’t need to and you simply wouldn’t have enough money. For example, Ancient Egyptian women made eyeliner out of what they called kohl, the mineral galena with soot. Today, people use it in more developed forms like liquid, gel, and pencil. Egyptians also used lip rouge for the cheeks and lips, face powder, paint for fingernails, and hair dye. The kind of eyeliner the Egyptians wore was mostly like the form liquid. The people of Ancient Egypt would dip thin brushes into a bowl of liquid eyeliner. In the picture to the right, you see the style of eyeliner which the Egyptians created. The style is called “cat’s eye”. And today, that style is used for a dramatic look. As for lipstick, in Egypt, it had no specific name. It was made from purplish-red dye taken from seaweed, a bit of iodine,and bromine mannite which are mineral powders today used for lip rouge.

If Egypt was so hot, then how would the people dress; would they wear tank tops and shorts and flip flops? Actually, the people of Ancient Egypt wore articles of clothing just like those, but they were made of different materials because social class took a big part in how you dressed. Men wore typical kilt-like skirts and a loincloth which was a piece of rectangular fabric falling just above the knee. It was tied around the waist with a strip of fabric or leather to be distinguished from the wealthy class. Women wore long dresses often with pleated cloaks. Noblewomen, or people with high ranks, wore dresses made of the best cloth with beads sewn onto it. As for shoes, the only ones people wore were sandals. The sandals were made of papyrus

and reeds. Rich people, courtiers, kings, and queens wore sandals made of leather. Footwear was a luxurious item and your wear lucky if you even had a pair of shoes because ordinary people didn’t haveshoes. Can you imagine walking on the hot, hot sand without any shoes?

Because it was so hot in Ancient Egypt, did they even have hair? No. Most Egyptians shaved their heads. But, the Egyptains didn’t just shave their heads because of the heat, but also because of bugs. Wigs were stiffened with beeswax, which also prevented bugs. The wig makers often used real hair because it was the easiest to get. The most common materials used for wigs were sheep’s wool and palm leaves. The most popular colors were black and red- from dried henna leaves mixed with cow’s blood. Later on, the trendiest fashion was to wear bright blue or bright green. The wealthiest people would sprinkle their wigs with real golden dust to show their wealth. Kings and queens wore fake beards,too. Egyptians wore lucky charms called Amulets. The charms were meant to give the wearer good spirits and give the person good luck. The most popular amulets were the eye of Horus, the winged scarab, and the fish.

Today, Ancient Egyptian culture is still standing, but it isn’t as strong as it used to be. From the Ancient Egyptians, we adapted the Solar Calendar and use it to mark the days and months of the year. It was an early form of our 12 month, 365 day calendar. We know so much about the daily lives of the ancient Egyptians - we can read their words, meet their families, feel their clothes, taste their food, enter their tombs and even touch their bodies - so it seems that we almost know them. Written in their writings and coded into their artwork the Egyptians asked the question that mostly all societies, cultures, and religions ask. What happens after death? How was the world created? Where does the sun go at night? Because the egyptians of that time could not do any scientific research, they answered their own questions with a series of myths designed to explain what others could not. From the egyptians, we adapted a time marking system, learned that makeup can give you another appearance, and learned that if you need answers then you must ask questions.



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