Winter Holiday in London - Conclusion

Day Three -
My last day in London was spent at the British Museum.  Again, there was so much to see that I barely skimmed the surface.  I made a bee line to the ancient gold jewelry of the Minoans and Mycenaeans, then through the sculptures of the Parthenon into ancient Assyria, Egypt and Mesopotamia.  Of course, this is where I always go, creature of habit that I am.  This time I took photos and notes.  There is a special energy in these rooms which I cannot explain but is definitely awe inspiring.  After browsing the antiquities, I had a fabulous lunch in the upper atrium cafe which included the most beautiful caesar salad I've even seen then off to browse the fabulous bookshop.  As I was leaving I walked quickly through a room filled with Native American antiquities as I was late for a meeting....Ohhhhhhhhh....had I known!  There are so many more treasures yet to see.  Maybe someday I will live in London for a time just so I can see every inch of this magnificent museum.  I ended the day with a visit to a  dear high school friend who is a full time resident in the UK and her delightful business partner and friend .... a great end to a lovely trip.

I took more photographs than I can share here but here are some highlights....

atrium at British museum

gold & carnelian necklace from Cyprus 1400BC

Minoan earring from Crete 1850-1550BC

Aphrodite 2nd cent. AD Roman

flying eagle necklace from Turkey 1400BC

goddess Hathor 1400BC Egypt

Nebamun, Hatshepsut & daughter hunting the marshes 1400BC

Egyptian limestone game "mehen" 2890BC

Egyptian faience necklace

Assyrian limestone letter and envelope 1850BC

funerary headdress & necklace from Ur 2500BC

Pheonician carnelian & gold necklace from Tarros Sardinia 500BC

Hellenistic oak wreath from Turkey 350BC

"If you are truthful you will have as much gold as you want."

~ Greek proverb ~

Cleopatra's Lipstick

Can you guess what tree is growing in my own backyard that produces a fruit that Cleopatra once allegedly used for lipstick?  

I've written about them before (Pom Pom Blossoms) when the buds were just forming, but now, my little pomegranates babies have all grown up and are about to begin a new journey turning my families lips pink before they travel into their bellies. 

Whether Cleopatra used the pomegranate seed juice for lipstick or not, we know that she must have drank the juice as the many of the trees were planted at Karnak Temple in Egypt 3,500 years ago!(according to Thutmose III, ruler of Egypt). She may have even had decorative items made in their likeness like the gorgeous silver vessel found in Tutankhamun's tomb (see below) and drank the fabled Egyptian pomegranate wine.... Sounds good to me!

I've been fascinated with Egypt since I was a child and was lucky enough to travel there with my family about 20 years ago and wander through the Great Pyramids, Karnak, Valley of the Kings and Abu Simbel.  Now that I'm reading "Cleopatra: A Life" by Stacy Schiff, a fascinating Pulitzer Prize winning biography, it's exciting to actually visualize some of the places Cleopatra traveled to as these famous monuments were still ancient wonder of the world in her time! 

 I just noticed the fabulous necklace in the carving of her above. Hmmmm.  I think I may have some jewelry design ideas here!

On the subject of lipstick and Cleopatra again, I must let you know that I also read that her lipstick was "made from carmine beetles, which when worked with pestle gave a strong red color pigment. This was mixed with ant’s eggs, which provided the base."  I prefer the pomegranate theory but whatever was used way back then was thought to be powerfully enchanting because in 1770, "England’s parliament passed a law against lipstick, stating that women who seduced men into marriage by means of make up could be tried as witches!"

silver pomegranate vessel found in Tutankhaman's tomb


PS.  If any of you witches out there are jones-ing to try pomegranate lipstick like Cleo, you can actually buy an eco-friendly one with pomegranate extract:  
Korres Raspberry Anti-oxidant Liquid Lipstick