ERMAHGERD! CHERSE YER ERN EDVENCHER: Mon Dieu! Makeup to Die For

Marie Antoinette, Queen of France

I am a self-confessed history buff – ask anything about history, and I just might have an item or two to tell you about an event. In fact, I am very much in love with the 18th century, the time of sky-high hairdos, feathers, hair powder, glamorous silk gowns in pastel hues, and – oddly so, the guillotine and Robespierre’s Reign of Terror. But my love affair with The Reign of Terror would have to fill another volume (and another blog). For now I would be concentrating on the contents of a lady’s vanity table.

A Frenchwoman at her toilette

The ideal woman of the 18th century had hair that was black, brown, or blond; strong red hair (harlot!) was unfashionable and generally would be dyed a different color, although chestnut and strawberry blond were popular. Her hair was of wavy or curly texture. Her forehead was high, her cheeks plump and rosy, and her skin was white. Fashionable eye colors included black, chestnut, or blue; eyebrows were divided, slightly full, semicircular, and tapered at the ends in a half moon shape. Her lips were small, with a slightly larger bottom lip creating a rosebud effect, soft, and red.

But of course only a few women came by the painted doll look naturally. Even the celebrated beauties of the time, Marie Antoinette, Queen of France, and Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire, had to rely on cosmetics to achieve portrait-worthy complexions. Here are a few favorite recipes of that era:

Belladonna

If you have an aptitude for Italian, you would know that Belladonna translates to “beautiful woman” in English. Women of the day used Belladonna extracts as eye drops as they were thought to add that “twinkle”. Dyes extracted from this plant were also used to redden lips and cheeks. 

Oh, and by the way, I would have you know that Belladonna is also known as Deadly Nightshade – and with good cause. Belladonna contains atropine, which, in large doses, causes delirium, convulsions and coma. Need I say it is poisonous?

Geiko used to put lead on their faces too.

Venetian Ceruse

During those days, a pale white skin was a sign of aristocracy. It means you didn’t have to work outside for a living, not unlike the peasants (oh my!) who work all day under the sun. Women who could afford this usually applied it to their face, neck and bosom. Seems harmless enough, eh?

Actually, Venetian Ceruse, however attractive its name may be, is made of vinegar and white lead. Lead poisoining, which in adults can cause increased blood pressure, digestive problems, kidney damage, nerve disorders, sleep problems, muscle and joint pains and mood changes – and, ironically, turns the skin a sickly gray. The horror of it!

Soliman’s Water

This is actually a sublimate of mercury, and women back then used this to remove spots, freckles, warts and any other undesirable blemish. This, however, polishes off the outer layer of the skin, and also corrodes the skin underneath. It makes teeth fall out prematurely, makes your gums recede, and, eventually, causes insanity (think Lewis Carroll’s Mad Hatter).

Women have an alternative, however, and it is no less harmful. A mixture of sulfur and borax causes the skin to slough off, causing blisters and facial twitches, and in large amounts, it can induce fever, vomiting, and even coma.

Permanent Red of Fucus

Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire

This one is made of red mercuric sulfide, so its effects are pretty much the same as that of Soliman’s water. However, this one is used to redden lips and cheeks.

There’s an alternative, however – and this time it is not poisonous (thank heavens!). A mixture of hard boiled egg white, cochineal and gum Arabic was also used to redden lips and cheeks. For once, real value for less! 

Gladly though, owing largely to the fact that the 18th century was considered the “Age of Enlightenment”, Marie Antoinette didn’t get to use much of these stuff – or maybe because it was considered vulgar for women of her social standing to apply too much makeup (until the early 1900’s makeup was worn only by thespians and tarts). She didn’t die of fallen teeth or because she went mad or she went into a coma – everyone knows she lost her head (not because of mercury) to the guillotine.

From this point on, we diverge from a lady’s vanity into a subject considered, in the 18th century, as “manly” – which enlightened minds of the time, such as Antoine Lavoisier, dabbled. 

TOXICOLOGY.

In a broader sense, toxicology is the study of poisons. However, this definition is far too simple to encompass this field. Generally, four major disciplines are classified under toxicology: mechanistic, descriptive, forensic, and clinical toxicology. We shall run down all of these disciplines in very simple terms in the succeeding paragraphs.

Lavoisier and his wife, Paulze

Mechanistic Toxicology deals with the cellular and biochemical effects of toxins, thereby producing rational therapy design and the development of tests to assess the degree of exposure of poisoned individuals.

Descriptive Toxicology uses the results from animal experiments (PETA frowns on this) to predict the dose or the level of exposure that would be fatal to humans in a process known as risk assessment. Regulatory toxicologists are responsible for interpreting data so that they may establish standards that define the level of exposure that will not pose risks to the public. 

Forensic Toxicology is concerned with the medicolegal consequences of toxin exposure. Forensic toxicologists focus on the establishment and validation of the analytic performance of forensic methods in order to generate evidence in legal situations, including the cause of death.

Clinical Toxicology deals with the interrelationships between toxin exposure and diseases. It specializes both in diagnosis as well as therapy.

Toxicology is usually considered a part of chemistry nowadays, mainly because the methods used to evaluate toxins qualitatively and quantitatively are best suited to this area. However, appropriate diagnosis and management of poisoned victims require equal efforts from all sections of a laboratory – something the people of the 18th century did not yet have.

An additional tidbit (which I can’t resist passing to you), there is such a job as a royal food taster – you know, checking for poisons before the king and queen accidentally consumes the food? Yeah. And here is a gratuitous still from Sofia Coppola’s interpretation of Marie Antoinette. Just look at all the cake.

Qu'il mangent de la brioche - that's "Let them eat cake" for you, peasants.

Bibliography:


Bender, A. “Assistants of Beauty:  Cosmetics in the Rococo and Empire Eras.”  La Couturiere Parisienne
Corson, Richard.  Fashions in Makeup, from Ancient to Modern Times.  Chester Springs, PA:  Dufour Editions, 2003.
DeGalan, Aimée Marcereau.  “Lead White or Dead White?  Dangerous Beauty Practices of Eighteenth-Century England.”  Bulletin of the Detroit Institute of Arts 76(1/2) 2002:  38-49.
Martin, Morag.  Selling Beauty:  Cosmetics, Commerce, and French Society, 1750-1830.  Baltimore:  Johns Hopkins University Press, 2009.

Bishop, Michael L. Clinical Chemistry Techniques, Principles and Correlations. 6th edition, 2010