This is a replica cosmetic palette in two sections: a grey marble base and a sliding brass lid with dimple dish. The brass double ended applicator tool has a horse hair brush at one end and a spatula on the other. The palette has a marble surface for grinding and a detachable brass lid with a dimple dish for mixing and storing wet materials. The rather coarse brush would have been used for applying foundation or blusher and the fine spatula would be used for grinding and mixing the ingredients and perhaps for applying eye liner.

Roman women used a great variety of make up, including foundation cream, eye shadow, eye liner, blusher and lip colour. Cosmetics couldn't be bought ready-made; the ingredients had to be ground and mixed by hand.

Foundation cream was a white lead paste often mixed with chalk or orris root - we now know that lead is extremely poisonous. Blusher was made from dried red clay. Eye make up was particularly important to Roman women, emphasizing eyes and eyebrows. Black kohl was made from ashes or soot mixed with antimony or galena (lead sulphide). Eye shadow was made from saffron or powdered green malachite. Green eye make up was popular in Egypt and became fashionable in Rome after Egypt was conquered by Rome in 30BC.

The brush/spatula is based on a find in the Hoxne hoard, the biggest collection of silver and gold found in Britain, now in the British Museum.

The palette replica is based on a find from the Roman city on which modern city of Cologne, Germany, is built. It is in the Römisch-Germanisches Museum in Cologne.