Cosmetic powder of 2000-years old Jetyasar culture. A complex analytical study

Jetyasar was a significant archaeological culture in the Eastern Aral Sea region, flourishing from the late 1st millennium BC to the 8th century AD. Highly likely it appeared as a result of contacts of oasis agriculturists and steppe nomads. Here, we report the first results of an analytic examination of chalk pieces from excavations of two female burials of the 2nd–4th centuries AD from the Eastern Aral region (Kazakhstan). GC/MS, XRF, SEM, micro-Raman microscopy, and X-ray diffraction studies indicated that the samples most probably belong to cosmetics used by the Jetyasar people due to their possible connection with the Great Silk Road. The basis of the studied products was a coccolithic microstructure (writing chalk). GC/MS method revealed a complicated mixture of organic compounds, indicating plants like wormwood, cinnamon, and probably mint. Perhaps, the studied cosmetics of Jetyasar culture might be manufactured from the local chalk and aromatic oils imported from India.