volsellae

MAC GIR-001209

Object type bronze tweezers

Culture/period Roman world

Materials bronze

Technique casting, moulding

Mint

Production date 1 / 201

Seu Museu d'Arqueologia de Catalunya - Girona

Current location MASPG

Archaeological site Empúries

Township Escala, l' (Alt Empordà)

Dimensions 90 x 17 mm

Description

Bronze tweezers or “volsellae” from Empúries (l'Escala, Alt Empordà), 9 cm long and 1.7 cm wide. These types of tweezers could be used for either cosmetic or surgical use. The tweezers or surgical “volsellae” usually appear to form panoplia with other instruments, connected by a ring. In the Roman world, hair removal was both a male and female activity and used to be practiced in the baths by specialist slaves called “alipili”.

Omeka ID 3157