Some readers, when looking closely at the Egyptian paintings in the tomb of the scribe Nebamun, might be surprised by the strange shapes crowning the figures’ heads. It may seem like they are wearing sirens like those on ambulances, fire trucks, or police cars. Obviously, that’s not the case.

It is something more domestic: what are called aromatic cones, a solid ornament made of a combination of oil, resin, fat, and myrrh, which the upper classes of Ancient Egypt, both men and women, wore on their heads at certain events to perfume themselves.

Until recently, Egyptologists only knew about the aromatic cones from their depiction in paintings and sculptures, as archaeology had not provided a preserved piece of this kind. It wasn’t until as recently as 2009 that a team from the University of Cambridge found some in Tell el-Amarna, confirming that what artistic iconography showed was not merely a stylistic device, similar to the halos of Christian saints, but actual material objects.

Cones depicted in paintings from the tomb of the scribe Userhat
Cones depicted in paintings from the tomb of the scribe Userhat. Credit: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons

Skeptics still have doubts because the objects, associated with buried individuals who were poor, no longer had any traces of perfume. In any case, they doubt that these were used as cosmetics, favoring the idea that they were used in fertility rituals.

This scarcity of evidence is mainly due to three factors. The first is that it is an object made from perishable material, quite fragile in fact, as it was designed to melt slowly during use, similar to how a bar of soap dissolves with water but much more quickly.

The second factor is that these were rather luxury items, linked to the social elites, and therefore not very abundant (although the mentioned discovery seems to contradict this). The third is that there weren’t perfume cones in every period of Egyptian history but only from the New Kingdom and more specifically from the reign of Hatshepsut, corresponding to the Eighteenth Dynasty.

Another painting from the tomb of Nebamun, where the cones appear
Another painting from the tomb of Nebamun, where the cones appear. Credit: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons

Or at least, it is from then on that they appear in paintings and bas-reliefs, as they do not appear in earlier periods; it is unknown whether this is because they did not exist or because evidence of their use has not been preserved. In fact, not even the name the Egyptians used to refer to them has survived.

This, along with the fact that in later times—from the Twentieth Dynasty onward—they were depicted in a more schematic way, allows aromatic cones to be considered a timely and useful iconographic element whose various forms help to date the works in which they are represented.

As mentioned earlier, the cone was made from a mixture of aromatic substances extracted from flowers by pressing and filtering—a process similar to that used for wine and oil—which was then mixed with excipients to obtain a mass that, once properly drained, was manageable and storable. It was then stored in containers for maceration, with the addition of starch to prolong its preservation. These containers could come in various shapes and materials; the most common was glass, not smooth but decorated with designs made by adding pigments when it was still soft.

Women in a ritual. The similarity of color between the cones and the dresses can be seen.
Women in a ritual. The similarity of color between the cones and the dresses can be seen. Credit: Rama / Wikimedia Commons

Sometimes, this perfumed mass was not taken out of its container to shape it into a cone but was kept in small jars, used as offerings to gods or the dead, as shown in paintings of offering priests. Herodotus mentions, regarding bodies subjected to the mummification process, that they fill the abdomen with crushed pure myrrh, cinnamon, and other spices.

Likewise, the scented resins burned during the funeral procession symbolized the breath of immortal life. And then there were the censers, which must have been very commonly used, given their frequent appearance in art.

Of the ingredients, the main one was wax, which gave it shape and consistency, with the addition of behen oil (an oil originating from India that was used to create a jasmine scent). Due to the body heat emitted by the user, it facilitated its melting and diffusion on the skin (another property of behenic acid was to slow down this melting).

But the most important part of its composition was the aromatic herbs and myrrh, a yellowish gummy resin that turns reddish when it dries and is obtained from the Commiphora myrrha, a tree typical of Northeast Africa and the Fertile Crescent (which is why myrrh is often mentioned in the Bible).

Priest Renpetmaa venerating Ra, wearing an aromatic cone on his head.
Priest Renpetmaa venerating Ra, wearing an aromatic cone on his head. Credit: Public domain / Wikimedia Commons

In antiquity, this substance was used to make incense, and the Egyptians used it both in the embalming process of their dead and to dilute the ink of the papyri. A third use, as we see, was in the making of perfumes, incorporating myrrh into the cones. These were placed on the head (which the Egyptians often kept completely shaved to avoid lice) or on top of the wig (commonly worn by both sexes), often painted to match the red or orange tones that dyed part of their white linen garments, as they ended up soaking into the clothes.

Body and environmental heat caused the cones to melt slowly, spreading the fragrance of myrrh around the user. It was not an uncommon habit, as the Egyptians paid special attention to their appearance from the very beginning of their civilization, as evidenced by the discovery of predynastic makeup palettes.

Cosmetics and cones were used together at banquets, parties, faith ceremonies, and funerals, although from the Third Intermediate Period onward, they seem to have been reserved exclusively for religious or funerary rituals or even – according to some interpretations of drawings – for birth ceremonies.

Of course, this was probably something associated with a well-off social position. When a member of the royalty or high society was going to attend an event, they would dress in a rich robe with the help of their servants, apply vivid-colored makeup to their face, particularly outlining the eyes, wear their wig, and adorn themselves with jewelry. It was upon arriving at the predetermined location that they would add the aromatic cone, which, besides providing personal perfume, also helped to mask the strong smell emitted by the cooked food being served.

The famous blind harpist of the tomb of Najt wears an aromatic cone on his shaved head
The famous blind harpist of the tomb of Najt wears an aromatic cone on his shaved head. Credit: Public domain / Wikimedia Commons

Artistic representations show these figures wearing diadems around their heads – some smaller ones encircle the cone itself – with the front part adorned with lotus flowers; sometimes, these flowers are not in the diadem but in their hands, suggesting they have removed them to smell them. There are also images of ladies without diadems being handed aromatic cones and white ribbons by young naked slaves, possibly to tie them to their wigs.

However, in such contexts, the cones were not used exclusively by nobles, priests, and kings; they were also provided to the servants, both the servants responsible for attending to guests and the musicians who entertained the evening with harps, flutes, and drums, as can be seen in some paintings.

Nevertheless, the lower classes also perfumed themselves, with their favorite ointments being the seed of Balanites aegyptiaca (desert date), which was also used to dye hair, and for the less affluent, castor oil.

This article was first published on our Spanish Edition on September 10, 2024: Los enigmáticos conos que los antiguos egipcios llevaban sobre la cabeza

SOURCES

Mª de los Reyes Luelmo Lautenschlaeger, Experimentación en arqueología: los conos de perfume. De la pared al laboratorio

Erik Blakemore, Ancient Egyptian ‘head cone mistery’ solved by archeologists

Victoria Sherrow, Encyclopedia of hair

Virginia Smith, Clean. A history of personal hygiene and purity

Wikipedia, Head cone

  • Share this article:

Discover more from LBV Magazine English Edition

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

Phases of wine making in an Egyptian tomb painting
How Ancient Egyptians Invented Wine Labels To many, it may seem strange that Egypt is now one of the world's largest wine producers, with an annual quantity similar to that of Britain. However, the fact is…
The famous idol head of Merimde.
The Enigmatic Merimde Culture, the Origin of Egyptian Civilization Although we are accustomed to reading about Egyptian kings and great pharaohs, about gigantic monuments such as pyramids and mastabas, Egyptian civilization did not emerge out of nowhere but developed…
Thutmose III subdues the Canaanites at the battle of Megiddo. Pylon of the temple of Amun at Karnak
Megiddo, the First Battle in History for which we have a Detailed Account, in the Annals of the Temple of Karnak We all know what is said to be the oldest profession in the world, but there is probably one preceding it—the military profession, as the use of violence to resolve…
Le_roi_Cambyse_au_siege_de_Peluse_par_Paul-Marie_Lenoir-1
Pelusium, the battle the Persians won over the Egyptians by throwing cats at them. Throughout History, men have not had enough of tearing each other apart in an endless number of wars, but they have incorporated all kinds of animals into the slaughters, from…
The sky goddess Nut, covered with stars, is held aloft by her father, Shu, and arches over Geb, her brother god of Earth. On the left, the rising sun (the falcon-headed god Re) sails through Nut's legs. On the right, the setting sun sails through his arms into the outstretched arms of Osiris, who will regenerate the sun in the underworld during the night
Egyptian Sky Goddess Nut Found to Be a Personification of the Milky Way The ancient Egyptians were renowned for their religious beliefs and astronomical knowledge of the Sun, Moon, and planets. However, it was unclear what role the Milky Way played in Egyptian…
The "rope-stretching" ceremony performed in Edfu's temple
Harpedonaptai, the Indispensable "Rope Stretchers" of Ancient Egypt In the long and fascinating history of Ancient Egypt, there were figures without whom many monumental and artistic achievements would not have been possible. Moreover, without them, chaos would have…

Something went wrong. Please refresh the page and/or try again.

Follow LBV Magazine on Google News