Characterization of a late bronze age “Kohl Box” from the Cilician Plain using FTIR and GC–MS

The subject of this study is a Late Bronze Age kohl box decorated with zoomorphic motifs recovered from Tepebağ Höyük (Cilician Plain, Turkey) and a quantity of black pigment that remained at the bottom of this box tubes. In ancient times, this kind of black pigments was used for the treatment of eye diseases and to reduce the brightness of the sun by applying it intensively around the eyes, rather than for its aesthetic and ornamental function. According to the spectroscopic results, the analyzed sample contains mostly lead-based minerals, which is mainly galena, a lead sulfide derivative known to be used as a kohl in ancient times. The chromatographic results indicated that there may be decomposed organic residues (ORs) in the sample, which may be from oil or fat. When the archaeological and archaeometric data are interpreted together, it is concluded that the powder compound within the sample, in accordance with the existing literature, is kohl and thus, the artifact may be a kohl box imported from Egypt.