Ovid on Cosmetics

Johnson has achieved an admirable feat by bringing together such a varied collection of primary and secondary materials in a clear and approachable way. This book will provide a very useful point of entry for any reader interested in understanding ancient attitudes towards and knowledge about cosmetics, cosmeceuticals, and beautification practices in general. Bryn Mawr Classical Review [This book] brings together the Latin text and a clear English translation with a thorough introduction and a truly insightful commentary ... [A]n invaluable contribution to Ovidian scholarship ... [and] a worthwhile read. Minerva This slim volume precisely fulfils the task it sets itself in the subtitle ... This is certainly the book to come to if you want to find out about the evidence for hair-curling irons, popular fabric colours or where to buy a wig in ancient Rome. Classics For All Reviews Johnson's important book is a scholarly dissection of Ovid's writings on personal appearance. She walks us splendidly through the details of hair, cosmetics and cosmeceuticals, jewelry, and clothing in Roman antiquity, and adds some modern resources into the mix as well. A fascinating, wide-ranging, and readable book. Kelly Olson, Associate Professor of Classics, Western University, Ontario, Canada Marguerite Johnson's welcome book conveniently brings together Ovid's discussions of female cosmetics and beauty treatments in his eroto-didactic poetry, including the surviving hundred lines of his treatise on Cosmetic Treatments for the Female Face. This fascinating volume, with helpful illustrations, will interest all students of women, sex and gender in classical antiquity, as well as historians of botany, medicine and science. -- Alison Keith, Professor of Classics, University of Toronto, Canada The major contribution of this work is that it makes accessible a wide range of evidence about ancient beautification. ... Johnson has achieved an admirable feat by bringing together such a varied collection of primary and secondary materials in a clear and approachable way. This book will provide a very useful point of entry for any reader interested in understanding ancient attitudes towards and knowledge about cosmetics, cosmeceuticals, and beautification practices in general. ... Johnson does a service to the field by making ancient texts, material evidence, and scholarship accessible to all readers, who will have clear direction for further study thanks to the work's wide scope and up-to-date bibliography. -- Rachel Philbrick Bryn Mawr Classical Review