Statue of Serket an Egyptian Goddess of Protection in the Predynastic Period (c. 6000–c. 3150 BC)
Ancient Egyptian royalty highly valued eyeliner (latter termed Kohl by Arabs) as a health treatment and as a cosmetic that reflects social status. Eyeliner keeps them cool and prevents and treats ailments such as trachoma, chalazion, as well as conjunctivitis among others. It also shields the eye from glare and the harmful effects of ultraviolet rays and desert sand. Both green pigment (made of malachite) and black pigment (made of galena/lead sulfide and known as “Mestem”) were applied to eyebrows in the Middle and New Kingdoms. Egyptian queens and noble women have applied it traditionally since the Predynastic Period of Egypt (3100 BC).
There is also growing evidence that other lower-class citizens used it as well. The Egyptian medical papyri contain numerous recipes for the treatment of eye ailments. In Papyrus Ebers (1550 BC), green eye-paint was used in 18 prescriptions and black eye-paint in 65.