Have you ever wondered about
the beauty secrets from times past?
I have.
We are unquestionable spoilt
in this day and age with the sheer number of products that are available to us,
catering to our every beauty need, want and desire.
But what did women do
thousands of years ago before M.A.C, Clarins or Max Factor were invented?
Did they simply embrace
the face they were born with, or even then did they hanker for more defined
eyes, rouged lips and a youthful complexion?
Well, read on and in my
mini beauty history lesson, you can find out!
The Egyptians
We know from everything
they left behind that the ancient Egyptians loved their cosmetics.
Egyptian women
wore foundation to lighten their skin and used kohl eyeliner to widen the
appearances of their eyes, men applied a powdered pigment made from mixing fat
and oil and other substances, to protect their eyes from the sun and Aristocrats
applied minerals to their faces to provide colour and definition to their
features.
The stunning colours seen often adorning the faces of
Egyptian kings and queens were from pigments which were often made out of
malachite, copper ore, or lead ore, though their favourite colours being the
stunning peacock-green powdered malachite and black crushed kohl.
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| An ancient Egyptian make up box containing the remnants of some cosmetics |
Oils were rubbed into the skin to protect it from the scorching
hot air, much like a moisturiser.
Red ochre was ground and mixed with water then applied
to the lips and cheeks, painted on with a brush and henna was used to dye the
fingernails yellow and orange.
Nice!
The Ancient Greeks
Cosmetics were an important part of
the life and culture of the Ancient Greeks.
Their idea of beauty was very pale
skin, fair, blonde hair and natural makeup, a little odd given that the hot,
Mediterranean climate they resided in tended to result in tanned skin and dark haired individuals.
 |
| Possibly a blusher or rouge pot |
However, due to the costs, only
rich women used to wear makeup in Ancient Greece.
The Greeks considered pale skin to be a sign
of prestige, beauty and wealth. To lighten their complexions, women would paint
their face with white lead.
(eek!)
(eek!)
 |
| Make up pot with molded disks of white make up |
Their lipsticks were a paste made
with red iron oxide and ochre clays or olive oil with beeswax while their eye
shadows were made with olive oil mixed with ground charcoal.
The Romans
The Roman philosopher, Plautus, also wrote, "A
woman without paint is like food without salt."
In Roman times, people were fixated
on appearing healthy and youthful, something that we continue to strive for
today.
They believed pink on the cheeks to
a be a sign of gold health and would use red chalk or red ochre to perfect
their look, but the application process was not done by themselves.
 | |||||
| The world's oldest cosmetic face cream, complete with the finger marks of its last user 2,000 years ago. Found by archaeologists excavating a Roman temple on the banks of London's River Thames |
Roman women
used slaves to apply their cosmetics for them, making them the modern day equivalent of beauty therapists!
The Middle
Ages
The European Middle Ages followed the Greek-Roman
trend for pale faces.
(I’d have fitted in nicely!)
(I’d have fitted in nicely!)
Being pale was a sign of wealth as It showed people
that you didn’t have to labour outdoors.
Some sixth-century women took this to the extreme and would
achieve the look by bleeding themselves.
Another popular beauty treatment of the day was the
taking of long, hot baths.
 |
| Spam! |
Weirdly, medieval fashion also prompted young women to pluck and shave
their hairline,in order to give them a higher forehead.
* cough*
spam!
Elizabethan
England
In Elizabethan England, like the Roman's, Greek's and Egyptian's before them, the 'ideal Tudor woman' had fair hair, pale skin and rouged lips and cheeks.
(I guess the desire for a tan is recent beauty development then in the grand scheme of things!)
Cosmetics were used as an indication of status and rank. It was also used to cover up scarring from the various diseases prevalent at the time such as smallpox.
(I guess the desire for a tan is recent beauty development then in the grand scheme of things!)
Cosmetics were used as an indication of status and rank. It was also used to cover up scarring from the various diseases prevalent at the time such as smallpox.
 |
| Pale & Interesting but poisonous |
Women applied thick, white make up made of lead to
their faces and finished the look by wearing a egg whites over their faces to
create a glazed look.
Women also began bleaching their hair with a substance
called lye which subsequently caused their hair to fall out, making wigs a big
deal.
Queen Elizabeth I was a fan both the lead make up and wigs.
Queen Elizabeth I was a fan both the lead make up and wigs.
The Victorians
The Victorian era saw a number of advances in
cosmetics and beauty products which was ironic as though the Victorian's valued a healthy, pale and delicate look, cosmetics were a bit of a taboo as it was associated with prostitutes and actresses.
A woman's hair was seen as her crowning glory, and their locks were rarely cut and sometimes supplemented with false hair.
 |
| A young, natural looking Queen Victoria |
A woman's hair was seen as her crowning glory, and their locks were rarely cut and sometimes supplemented with false hair.
 |
| An advert for face cream from 1884 |
Believe it or not, Arsenic was an extremely commonly used chemical in the Victorian era, even appearing as ingredients in beauty products.
(see below)
So there you have it, a brief history of beauty and make up through the ages!
How times change!
