Female beauty: A historical journey through the most important canons

For every woman, beauty is a symbol of power, respect and self-confidence; her image is her letter of introduction to the outside world. Motivated by the need to always look beautiful throughout history, they have been in charge of practicing different techniques of makeup, hairdressing, skin improvement, among others, with the aim of enhancing their femininity. Believe it or not, sometimes they were capable of mistreating themselves in order to be considered “the perfect woman.”

With the purpose of commemorating the month of women, it is appropriate to take a historical tour of the different beautification techniques used by women in various parts of the world, as well as to learn how beauty standards have been in each era up to the present. .

Egyptian beauty

The Egyptian civilization was one of the first to take advantage of the field of cosmetics. Frequently, women applied creams and ointments that favored skin care, leaving it protected against high temperatures. The aforementioned products could also be based on apricot pulp or snails when it was desired to prevent the appearance of wrinkles.

To start with their makeup, the Egyptians used a mask made of soot and ammonia on their eyes known as Kohl. As a rule indicated by the beauty canons of the time, the eyes should be outlined in black and green colors. They also used iron oxide compounds with red ocher to paint their lips.

The concepts of manicures as well as pedicures also began to be used on this side of the world, as well as waxing, prepared from gums or ashes. For them, this last technique was one of the most important on their path to beautification, since a hairless body could be considered “perfect.”

Queen Cleopatra has been described as one of the most beautiful women in Egypt. To achieve softer and more elastic skin she took donkey milk baths with honey.

What did the Greeks and Romans do?

Both Greek and Roman men and women combed their hair, waxed, and made up equally since, for both sexes, beauty was of great importance.

The canons of ancient Greece responded to harmonic as well as mathematical patterns. For them, bodies were perfect when they enjoyed great symmetry. According to the sculptor Polykleitos, a body must measure seven times the head to be considered “ideal”.

As if that were not enough, women had to have small breasts, wide hips, wavy hair and a sharp nose to be taken as references in terms of beauty.

For their part, Roman women used tartaric acid obtained from wine leftovers for chemical peeling procedures. It should be noted that, among the occupations of certain Roman slaves, was the beautification of their masters, so they had to be specialists in makeup, as well as hairdressing.

In this civilization there was already talk of cosmetic surgery, which had a reconstructive value. Women submitted to them when they needed to have their eyes, lips, teeth or nose touched up. This last case was that of those adulterers or thieves, who were ordered to remove their noses as punishment.

Christianity vs beauty

During the Middle Ages, women did not care about their physical appearance because, according to the ideals of Christianity, the female should only focus on the salvation of her soul instead of the frivolity that fashion represented.

With the passage of time, flirting returned to its peak with the influence of Muslim culture, since they did give real importance to their personal appearance.

This type of women provided important care to their faces by applying lipstick to both their cheeks and lips, as well as lining their eyes with Kohl. To go anywhere they covered their faces with long veils of various colors.

They also kept perfumed with very fine aromas, took care of their nails and adorned their hands with different kinds of jewelry. In the same way, several sessions of relaxing massages were carried out for the care of their skin. This is how beauty once again took on the importance it deserved during that time.

Not so white faces for rebirth

During the Renaissance, the beauty canon that inspired women of the time was based on proportion and harmony. An example of this style at the female level was Venus de Milo, one of the most memorable statues of the Hellenistic period.

For a woman to be considered beautiful or perfect at that time, she had to have the following characteristics:

• Blond hair
• Thin
• Big clear eyes
• Long neck
• Small breasts
• Short hands as well as thin.

At this time, the use of scented creams or perfumes was used to hide bad odors caused by dirt or lack of bathroom.

With regard to makeup, the women used rice powder to make their faces more pale. She in turn was given a greater vibrancy with blush on the cheeks and Kohl to line the eyes.

Those who suffer from a disease choose to use more makeup than normal, thus hiding said condition.

On the contrary, in the Baroque the tendency was to exaggerate the features, which is why the mixture between saffron and pollen became more frequent until obtaining a blue color that was applied both on the forehead and on the hands to give a greater appearance. pronunciation to the veins of those places.

In the same way, moles and wigs were placed. The first could paint themselves black or be made of velvet to hide the marks left on their faces by smallpox. The use of corsets was also fashionable; with them the curves of females were accentuated.

Oriental beauty

In Japan, geishas were another standard for a perfect woman. They were dedicated to the practice of traditional dances, singing, literature, playing musical instruments, poetry, among other arts that they used to entertain their clients at different banquets or social events.

For their makeup they used binsuke wax as a base, as well as crushed safflower petal pencils to paint their lips, each of them was in charge of taking care of their makeup because it is a fundamental piece of their work.

Victorian beauty

During Queen Victoria’s tenure, women underwent painful procedures to look beautiful.

Those who were older than 30 years could do the makeup of the time; this consisted of hiding the natural color of the face by turning it completely white. Subsequently, they proceeded to make outlines with chalk or mercury. As if that were not enough, they used to take sulfur baths to improve the quality of their skin, which is also beneficial for their nails and hair.

The women who practiced it had to be very careful, since if they inhaled this substance they could die of poisoning.

During this time the “big manes” that could be wigs or made with natural hair were in fashion. Those who enjoyed blonde hair burned some locks to get more volume. In view of the repetitive action, the women of the time used fat from brown bears to prevent hair loss and also to soften it. This action caused the extinction of these animals.

As his age progressed, more wrinkles were displayed; to eliminate them they took baths with water and salt. Subsequently, mild electric shocks were carried out.

During this time, women were forced to follow these standards of beauty in order to be seen as “the perfect woman.”

What has been the beauty canon in recent years?

With the arrival of the new millennium, the standards have changed rapidly since now the bodies of women must be slim, tall, with a large bust, flat abdomen, smooth or wavy hair. The physique continues to be of great importance, making some want to undergo cosmetic surgery regardless of the risks they may take to become an example of beauty.

In addition to the best appearance, both human quality and intellect have become more relevant. That is, just like a sculptural body, the perfect woman must also have solid ideals, self-confidence, and even a vocation to serve society. .

As much as makeup or beauty techniques in general change, the need to look and feel beautiful to better face all of life’s challenges will never go out of style.

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