FACIAL BEAUTY: A COLLECTION OF GLASS KOHL CONTAINERS FROM THE NORTH OF JORDAN

Abstract

The rescue excavations, conducted by the Department of Antiquities of Jordan in 1999
and 2000 under the supervision of Alia Khasawneh and Nasr Al-Zubi, in two late Ro-
man/Early Byzantine cemeteries at Waqqas and At Turra, in the territories of The Irbid
Governorate, brought to light a number of glass flasks among the other funeral objects. A
group of sixteen delicate glass flasks from both sites are presented here. This paper
demonstrates that the flasks were used as kohl "eyeliner"containers. The analysis of a
sample obtained from one of the flasks revealed that it was the mineral Galena. Further-
more, the presence of small applicators (kohl sticks) with the glass flasks confirms their
use.