FROM ANCIENT EGYPT TO THE VICTORIAN ERA - A LOOK THROUGH EYELASH HISTORY: PART I
- Morgane
- Jul 31, 2019
- 3 min read
Mirror, mirror on the wall, who has the most beautiful eyelashes of them all? If you’re obsessed with your eyelashes’ length and look, you may have already wondered if what you’re trying to achieve today was the trend decades, or even centuries, ago. From Ancient Egypt to today’s society, the definition of beautiful lashes has come a long way. Here is the first part of a look through eyelash beauty history.
Ancient Egypt 3500 BC.
Keep Wicked Spirits Away
Taking care of your eyelashes was a big deal in ancient Egypt. They were commonly darkened either to black or green using kohl, the most popular eyelash cosmetic at that time. In addition, men were applying ointments to keep the influence of bad spirits and children were thought to be protected from the evil eye by having their eyelashes smeared. As for women, they believed that malachite (a kohl component) was an aphrodisiac provided by Harthor, the goddess of love. According to ancient Egyptians, eyelash cosmetics did not only have spiritual properties, but also medicinal ones. Applying kohl on your lashes was thought to be the best way to protect your eyes from the sun’s rays and dazzling glare, which was pretty useful in the desert!
Ancient Rome 753 BC. - 476 AD.
Eastern beauties
To be beautiful in the Roman Empire implied having long, thick and curled eyelashes as a reminder of Eastern women’s beauty. Kohl and burnt cork were applied with small ivory sticks by ornatrices (servants and slaves who were taking care of and beautify Roman women) to darken and thicken the eyelashes and maintain the required beauty standard. And believe me, when they said “standard”, they really meant it since long lashes’ were a proof of chastity! With the arrival of Christians, this practice started to change as luxury in general, fancy cosmetics and other gimmicks were condemned by the first fathers of the church. Natural beauty was said to be the most pleasant in the eyes of God.
Middle Ages 1066 - 1485
Hide these lashes for the love of God!
In the Medieval era, the most beautiful part of a woman’s face was considered to be the forehead. Styling your lashes was obviously not a thing, as removing them was part of the process for better emphasizing the forehead. Getting rid of your precious lashes wasn’t only needed to meet the beauty standard of that time, but also to comply with religion. Women were banned from exhibiting any of their hair in public - eyebrows and eyelashes included - as they were considered an erotic feature. Using makeup was often left for prostitutes… Who knew having the long, full and thick beautiful lashes we’re all craving today was considered so inappropriate at that time?
Elizabethan Era 1533 - 1603
Orange is the new black
Queen Elizabeth and her beautiful reddish-gold hair inspired a significant number of women back then. Yes ladies, the trend was to get the same ginger eyelashes as the queen’s natural ones. And that was a real challenge to do so, as respectable women were still not supposed to work on enhancing their lashes, but instead, just stick with what Mother Nature gave them. The obsession with the royal eyelashes was so strong that secretly using crushed berries, fireplace’s soot, rhubarb juice or even sulphuric acid to dye their lashes in a similar orange-like shade was common practice. Sadly, these homemade dyes were comprised of highly toxic substances, causing hair loss and damage - beauty comes at a high cost, right….?
Victorian era 1837 - 1901
Mascara, you had me at hello
After centuries of repression and Hair-hunting, the Victorian era symbolized the beginning (or the comeback, depending on how you look at it) of eyelash enhancement. The first commonly used mascara was created as a part of the Romantic movement, as cosmetics became more and more popular among women. We owe this eyelash breakthrough to the perfumer of Queen Victoria, Eugène Rimmel. Made of coal dust and vaseline jelly, the product was seen as non-toxic back then and became promptly popular all around Europe - and still is today!
Here was the tumultuous history of eyelashes from ancient Egypt to the Victorian era. While mainly enhanced for spiritual beliefs in ancient Egypt, they were hunted down by the church for centuries before the Victorian era and the fabulous invention of Eugène Rimmel brought them back to spotlight. The creation of mascara marked the beginning of a complete new chapter for eyelash beauty: from now on, women would do anything to get beautiful, mesmerizing, fluttering lashes. Discover eyelash trends, decade by decade from the early 1900s to today, in the second and final part of this article coming out soon!
We hope this article helped you learn more about the fantastic world of lashes.
Please share and follow us on social! 🧡⏳
Kommentarer