Egyptian beauty. Oils and ointments were used for face, body and hair
The ancient Egyptians they are also famous for the assiduous care they devoted to the body , both in terms of hygiene , a necessity largely dictated by the hot-humid climate in which they lived, both from a strictly aesthetic point of view, field in which the people of the Nile achieved excellent and, for the time, incredible results.
The Egyptians were masters in the preparation of oils and ointments for the skin , which men and women made abundant use of without distinction; during the New Kingdom , the introduction of olive oil and the discovery of its extraordinary natural virtues, added another precious ally for maintaining health and beauty, as it joined the use of linseed, sesame and castor oils and bak (obtained from moringa nut ), which has been used for centuries.
Numerous papyri they inform us about the complex “toilet” daily of the time, a routine of well-being and cleansing based on bizarre ingredients, from boiled salamadre to blood of various animals , from lion fat to that of snake, just to name a few, but also evolved in some respects, starting with the fact that, despite the lack of knowledge in the scientific field, the Egyptians were the first to guess the validity of certain active ingredients present in some natural elements still used in cosmetics today.
In addition to nourishing, moisturizing and protecting the skin of the face and body, oils, especially olive oils, were used to keep hair young, full-bodied and shiny, a part of himself held in high regard in Ancient Egypt; a unique recipe to combat alopecia in this regard based on ... mice boiled in olive oil ! .