The strigil or stlegis is a tool for the cleansing of the body by scraping off dirt, perspiration, and oil that was applied before bathing in Ancient Greek and Roman cultures. In these cultures the strigil was primarily used by men, specifically male athletes; however, in Etruscan culture there is some evidence of strigils being used by both sexes. The standard design is a curved blade with a handle, all of which is made of metal.
Bronze strigil (Roman, 1st century AD, Walters Art Museum
Roman strigils, 1st century BC
Strigil Sarcophagus in Saint-Victor de Marseille Abbey
The Croatian Apoxyomenos is an Ancient Greek statue cast in bronze in the 2nd or 1st century BC; it was discovered in 1996 on the bottom of the sea near the Croatian islet of Vele Orjule, southeast of the island of Lošinj. It represents an athlete – Apoxyomenos – in the act of scraping sweat and dust from his body with the small curved instrument called a strigil.
Croatian Apoxyomenos
Replica showing how the statue appeared when it was found
Head
Torso