Date: Circa: 15th - 16th Century: English 

Size: Scallop Shaped: Length: 9.9 cm: Width: 7.2 cm:Thickness: 2.3 cm: Weight: 123.09 grams:

This is a rare survivor in the condition we see here, a late Medieval decorated copper-alloy cosmetic hinged case thought to not only be a case to contain Venetian Ceruse but, to still contain large traces of this face cosmetic: 

Outside of the case:

The upper and lower faces of the case are cast in copper-alloy [bronze] and appear to be 'scalloped' in shape and decoration: 

This shape may have a root meaning symbolizing the starting point from which Medieval pilgrims began their journey , all drawn to to a single point at the base of the shell, Santiago de Compostels: however, perhaps more another older tradition of scallop association is possible: In ancient Greek mythology the scallop is an Aphrodites symbol, Goddess of love and beauty, who was born from the sea foam and reached the shores of Cyprus on a scallop's shell:

At the top of the upper case we see a decorated retention loop which, when pushed backwards releases the case closure hooks: To the base we see a nodular decorated hinge mechanism: The rear of the case is roughly the same as the front in design however, the rear looks as if it has received restoration in antiquity with the addition of a bronze patch application:

Inside of the Case: 

The upper inside face of the case is thought to be a highly polished mirror-like face for visual reflection during cosmetic application: The lower case is the receptacle for the cosmetic, and this case it appears to be Venetian Ceruse: The upper and lower cases are lipped to facilitate a flush close:

The practice of deliberate skin lightening initially began in ancient Rome, where lead carbonate was used as a cosmetic product to whiten the skin. Light skin was thought to be a symbol of femininity, and the beauty ideals during that time favoured clarity of the individuals' skin. Lead carbonate was also used throughout ancient Egypt and Greece as a white cosmetic, known as cerussa.

15th and 16th Century Venetian Ceruse - Spirits of Saturn: 

This cosmetic for skin whitening was in great demand and considered the best available at the time, supposedly containing the best quality white lead sourced from Venice, the global merchant capital at the time: The basic chemical formula is that of a lead carbonate 2 PbCo3 . Pb(OH): In England in the 16th century the most famous user of Venetian Ceruse was Queen Elizabeth I and it has been suggested that she may have suffered skin damage, hair loss and spells of mental incapacity as a direct result of lead-poisoning from the excessive use of Venetian Ceruse: 

Condition: very fine - extremely fine:

The case is in full working order from closure / opening catch to hinge: The bronze has a fine copper-alloy patination tone seen in brown and copper tones : I am not aware of another example outside of a museum collection that contains significant quantities of the Venetian Ceruse remaining within an original case: 

Provenance: 

Part of my own private collection formed in the 1990's: Originally acquired from a private collector in Northern Lincolnshire in the early 2000's:

Reference material and further reading: 

Where possible ancient artifacts may be referenced to similar material observed in the following publications within my collection:

Where possible finger rings may be referenced to similar material observed in the following publications within my collection:


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