Washing powder - Araiko

Japanese: 洗粉 - あらいこ

A cosmetic that has been used since ancient times to wash the face and body, whiten the skin, heal rough skin, and refine the texture. In ancient China, it was called sozu, and was made by mixing soybean or red adzuki bean flour with 10 to 30 kinds of herbal medicines such as chalk powder, kuzu root, sandalwood, and musk. It was also introduced to Japan from ancient times, where sozu was called sakuzu, a corrupted version. Adzuki bean flour and other bean flour contain a lot of saponin, which has a strong foaming effect, so it has a strong ability to remove dirt and was also used alone.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

顔や身体を洗うと同時に，色を白くし，肌荒れを治し，きめを細かにするとして古くから用いられてきた化粧料。古代中国では澡豆（そうず）とよび，大豆や赤小豆粉に胡粉，土瓜根(カラスウリの根)，白檀（びやくだん），麝香（じやこう）など生薬を10～30種配合したものが使われていた。日本へも古くから伝わり澡豆を佐久豆（さくず）と訛ってよばれていた。小豆などの豆粉は発泡性の強いサポニンを多く含んでいるため，汚れをおとす力が強く単独にも使っていた。

出典　株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について　情報

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