Ancient Egyptian Kohl Tube
The kohl tube is a small cylindrical vessel used in ancient Egypt to hold kohl, the black and green eye paint worn by men and women from the Old Kingdom onward. Eye paint was prepared by grinding minerals on a slate palette and mixing the powder with fat, then applying it around the eyes with a stick; green paint from malachite was mainly cosmetic, while black paint from galena protected the eyes from the glare of the sun and, because of its lead content, repelled flies and bacteria that could cause eye disease. Kohl was so valued that the ancient Egyptians ranked it second only to water as a