The restoration of the frigidarium of the Cluny thermae has just finished, and it is here, as well as in two rooms of the Hôtel de Cluny, that the exhibition is being held. Its theme is grooming and bathing, demonstrating the importance of cosmetics and body care in Antiquity and the Middle Ages. Also, chemical analysis of ancient cosmetics gives the project an unexpected dimension…

La dame à sa toilette (détail) Ecole de Fontainebleau vers 1560© Musée des Beaux-Arts de Dijon © photo F. Jay

Taking a bath was an event in everyday life in Antiquity and the exhibition shows a wide range of objects: toilet kits containing powder boxes, perfume bottles, combs, mirrors, precious and ordinary objects and small instruments used for grooming. Sculptures (antique portraits and mediaeval statues), painted vases and paintings on wood from the fifteenth century complete this panorama of beauty in Antiquity and the Middle Ages.

The exhibition unfolds in chronological order. The sections on Antiquity evoke the thermae and their decoration notably through a set of statues on the theme of Aphrodite Bathing, a legacy from the fourth century often copied by the Romans.

The rooms dealing with the mediaeval period fly in the face of the stubborn image we have of the ‘dark ages’, showing the variety and even luxuriousness of the accessories and cleaning rituals. Far from forgotten, related great ancient texts are displayed in beautifully-decorated manuscripts. Some include rare images of mediaeval baths, such as the famous bathroom tapestry of seigniorial life that closes the exhibition.

Statuette : Aphrodite détachant sa sandale - époque gréco-romaine, musée du Louvre © RMN - Hervé Lewandowski

The exhibition also has an unexpected scientific dimension. A study carried out by L’Oréal research laboratories and the French Museums’ Research and Restoration Centre (C2RMF-CNRS) analysed 144 samples to gain a better understanding of the composition and use of cosmetics. You’ll see objects that have discovered to include traces of powder or ointment, like an astonishing pyxis filled with cream for whitening the complexion, discovered in 2003, and a funerary vase containing pink cosmetics.

The exhibition The Bath and the Mirror – ody Care and Cosmetics from Antiquity to the Middle Ages runs from 20th May – 21st September 2009 at the Musée national du Moyen Âge – Thermes et Hôtel de Cluny, 6 place Paul-Painlevé, 75005 Paris (map here).

Open every day except Tuesdays from 9.15am – 5.45pm. Admission (includes the permanent collection) 8.50 €, concessions 6,50 €. Free for under 26 year-olds and for everyone on the first Sunday of each month.

Official museum site here. More info about the exhibition here.