Most discussions of henna begin with a statement such as, “the history of henna is lost in the swirling mists of time,” often as a preface to ‘henna originated in MY culture, and my culturehas the only TRUE henna heritage.’ Cultural claims are important to the identity of cultures, andthe fervor of belief in them is genuine. Henna has been around for a long time, and is wellintegrated into many cultures. There may be many discoveries, origins, independent and laterentangled developments of the cultures of henna. Occasionally there are happy accidents ofhistorical preservation such as the Ebers papyrus1 in Egypt and wall paintings from the lustral basin in the palace at Herakleon2 that provide us with a clear view of henna as it was there, henna as it was then, henna as it was on that person, and henna as a person used it in that way. When this sort of robust evidence such is lacking in the archeological record, an examination of proxy data can be used to evaluate the probable early use and cultural dissemination of henna in human cultural traditions.
During the most recent Ice Age, there was a broad area across Africa suitable for henna. The lowered sea levels created a very narrow gap from Ethiopia to Yemen, as well as a land bridge across the Persian Gulf up to the straits of Hormuz. Both henna plants and people could have migrated across this region. There is no direct evidence of human use of henna in the Arabian Peninsula and along the Arabian Sea coast the prior to 4000 BCE; the possibility of henna use can be constructed through proxy evidence.
Read more: https://www.mehandi.com/v/vspfiles/downloadables/chapt1c_stylists-solution.pdf
Links to specific topics in this chapter:
Theoretical Use of Henna in Prehistory
Henna, Astronomy, and the Agro-Ecology of the Mediterranean Bronze Age
Ancient Mesopotamian and Levantine Henna
Early cultural henna use in the Arabian Peninsula and along the Arabian Ocean
Henna during the Late Bronze Age in the Mycenaean Eastern Mediterranean
