The History Of Makeup part II

Old Testament, India, China and Japan:

Makeup was mentioned in the Old Testament. Jezebel, who is a Phoenician Princess, who becomes queen by marrying King Ahab of the Northern Kingdom during the time the nation of Israel was divided into Northern (Israel) and southern (Judah) Kingdoms, is described as a woman who accents her eyes with cosmetics (around 840 BC)

In India, Cosmetics have been used since the IV or V century. Men and Women used coal as a form of eyeshadow.
Vermilion, which is a opaque orangish red pigment derived from powdering cinnabar (mercury sulfhide), was used to colour the cheeks. However, It is Henna, more specifically Mehndi, the art of painting on the hands and feet, which is perhaps the most well-known cosmetic application from this exotic land.
Henna is thought to have "Barakah" or blessings; therefore, it was applied for good luck and beauty. The Henna plant is believed to provide  love and good fortune onto a person, hence it's usage in wedding ceremonies even to this day.
Today, Henna is used as a non permanent alternative to tattooing.

In Ancient China:
Especially in the Tang Dynasty, there were seven steps in cosmetic makeup for the belles: powder base, applying colour to the face, eyebrow darkening, applying "forehead gold" or "floral twinkle/gold", painting the dimples, decorating the cheeks and applying lip colour. It is believed that lip makeup was originally practiced to please the gods in religious occasions. As time passed by, people realized that it could liven up one's spirit and sometimes even could reveal one's social status. As a consequence, different materials for lip beauty products were consequently tested and used to make the lips red and bright, creating the Chinese art of lip makeup. The lip beauty products in ancient China were normally called "lip balm" or "mouth balm", as recorded by the Chinese dictionary shiming (or; Explanation of Names) written by Liu Xi in the Eastern Han Dynasty (AD25-AD220).
Lip balm was not only worn by women during the historic times, the raw material was called Vermillion, (mercuric sulfide- Hgs)
Women who could afford it, would utilize Saffron to create blushes. Saffron is a spice derived from the Saffron flower native to southwest Asia it is cultivated in places such as the Philippiens, India, and Kashmir. For decades, Saffron has been the most expensive spice by weight. Women who could not afford Saffron  would use grass, leaves, and berries to give a green tint to their eyebrows.

    

In Ancient Japan there was a custom of painting the face with red pigments. This primitive use of cosmetics evolved into a more aesthetic approach in the latter half of the sixth century. When rouge powder, and other forms of makeup were imported into Japan along with other aspects of culture from China and Korean peninsula. In 692, a buddhist priest Knojo is said to have been the first to make lead-based face powder in Japan, and delighted Empresss Jito by presenting this new invention to her.
During the Heian period (794-1185), especially after the suspension of Japan's embassies to Tang China, cosmetics in Japan shifted from an imitation of Chinese models to a style more attuned to the Japanese sensibility:
Women wore their hair very long and straight, almost to the floor; applied white face powder, plucked their eyebrows and repainted them higher on the forehead; and blackened their teeth.
By the early Edo period (1600-1868) there were elaborate treatises on etiquette and department for women that also gave detailed instructions on the proper use of cosmetics. During this period cosmetics centered on a palette of three basic colours; red (lip rouge, fingernail polish) white (face powder), and black (tooth-blackener, eyebrow pencil).
During the Edo period women were especially concerned with the application of face powder, for a white skin was regarded as the essence of a beautiful women. Face powder was a white, lead-based pigment dissolved in water and applied with the hands or a broad, flat brush. Pigment for rouge was made primarily from safflowers, and applied to the lips, cheeks, and fingernails. Like face powder, a light application was regarded as a mark of refinement. In the late Edo period, however, there was a fad for heavier application of lipstick for an iridescent effect.
Pigment from fresh safflowers become so expensive it was said to be worth it's weight in gold.
The practice of blackening teeth, a female rite of passage deeply associated with coming of age and marriage since the middle ages, became firmly established from the middle of  the Edo period onwards as a symbol of  a women's married status.

   
The Geisha would use binstuke wax, to put on their faces as a makeup base much the same way we use moisturizer or facial primer today. The traditional makeup for an apprentice Geisha, called Maiko, features a thick white base on the face with blood red lips and red and black accents around the eyes and eyebrows, and to define the nose. The white powder is mixed with water into a paste and applied with a bamboo brush starting from the neck and working upwards, The white makeup covers the face, neck,and chest, with two or three unwhitened areas (forming a w or v shape) left on the nape, to accentuate this traditionally erotic area, and a line of bare skin around the hairline creates the illusion of a mask. After the foundation layer is applied, a sponge is patted all over the face, throat, chest, the nape and neck to remove excess moisture and blend the foundation. Next the eyes and eyebrows are drawn in. Traditionally, charcoal was used, but today modern cosmetics are used. The eyebrows and edges of the eyes are coloured black with a thin charcoal; a Maiko also applies red around her eyes. The lips are filled in using a small brush, the colour comes in a small stick, which is melted in water. Crystallized sugar is then added to give the lips lustre.  Originally, the white base mask worn on the face was made with lead, but after the discovery that it poisoned the skin and caused back problems for the older Geisha, it was replaced with rice powder. Ohaguro, which is a black paint used on the teeth, would be used when Maiko graduated and become an independent Geisha. They would sometimes use bird droppings to complete a lighter hair colour.

To be continued....