1,800-Year-Old Egyptian Kohl Bottle Found in York Rewrites Roman Travel History

Archaeologist Hillary Cool identified an 1,800-year-old Egyptian glass kohl bottle among artifacts excavated in York, England, challenging assumptions about Roman-era travel and trade. The bottle was originally unearthed in 1983 by the York Archaeological Trust at Tanner Row, a late 2nd-century dumping ground, and was misidentified as a perfume flask. Forty years later, Dr. Cool recognized its origin while reviewing archives, drawing on her expertise with Sudanese glass artifacts. Unlike typical Roman English perfume bottles with thinner walls and standard shapes, this vessel matched Egyptian and Sudanese kohl containers. Kohl eyeliner was ethnographically specific to Egypt and Sudan and not widely traded beyond those regions, according to Dr. Cool. The discovery suggests a direct link between Egypt and Roman Britain, possibly via an Egyptian soldier or a returning English soldier. It joins other Egyptian finds in England, including an ivory box with the god Anubis in Leicester and military seals from Egypt, collectively indicating cultural exchange across the Roman Empire.