- Hardcover: 256 pages
- Publisher: Sutton Publishing (26 May 2005)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0750938870
- ISBN-13: 978-0750938877
- Product Dimensions: 25.4 x 17.9 x 2.5 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 526,560 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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More About the Author
Product Description
Product Description
Why did Egyptians wear so much make up? Were the Vikings really unwashed barbarians? How did the fashionable Elizabethan deal with bathing, lice and excessive facial hair? What happened underneath all that hairpowder and scented pomade in the eighteenth century? How did young women find out about the latest beauty products in the past? This fascinating and unique book traces the way in which we have adorned, perfumed and presented ourselves from the earliest prehistoric evidence right through to the dawn of the multi-million dollar cosmetics industry. We discover what the perfumes found in Tutankhamen's tomb would have smelt like, what made the medieval woman so synonymous with 'the lily and the rose', and where the most fashionable place was for a woman to buy perfume in the eighteenth century. In the sixteenth and seventeenth century the devil reputedly carried a looking glass, and the most expensive cosmetics could kill. A century later, Beau Brummel recommended the scent of freshly aired linen as an appropriate perfume for a gentleman, and Napoleon himself doused himself in quantities of cologne. This richly illustrated book also includes a wide selection of modernised recipes for those wishing to experience some of the cosmetics or perfumes used by our ancestors.
About the Author
Sally Pointer combines an academic background in archaeology with a lifelong curiosity about how the everyday objects of the past were made and used. She lives in Mountain Ash, near Cardiff.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fabulous book - equally entertaining and informative,
By Cheryli "Beastly Bun" (Southampton UK) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Artifice of Beauty (Hardcover)
I bought this book mostly for the Ancient World section - particularly Egypt. However it wasn't long before becoming completely engrossed in all the other chapters. This delightful book never falls into the trap of re-hashing tired old facts. Sally P's meticulous research and vast knowledge of cosmetic history, use and ingredients have produced a richly rewarding book packed full of fascinating bits of information. I especially enjoyed the use of original photographs and rarely-seen illustrations. The book is well laid out with not only a chronological series of chapters on cosmetics through the ages, but also a generous A-Z of ingredients, detailed listing of tools, implements and containers, drawing to a close with an inspiring chapter on adapting early recipes for modern use, a chapter explaining modern pigments and useful information about weights and measures.Even appendices 1 and 2 make fascinating reading!
You could easily read The Artifice of Beauty from cover to cover or use as a reference to dip into as the need arises. I look forward to Ms. Pointer's future publications.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A fascinating and scholarly tour of the history of cosmetics,
By cranmere (Bristol, UK) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Artifice of Beauty (Hardcover)
Most modern Western women take cosmetics for granted, yet there is a fascinating history behind our modern use. Sally is an historian who specialises in cosmetic history, however she is also a practical historical recreator who has experimented extensively in her field and the result is a fascinating tour through the developement and history of cosmetics which is both scholarly and entertaining to read.
4.0 out of 5 stars
artifice of beauty,
This review is from: The Artifice of Beauty (Hardcover)
This book was exactly as described, just slight damage to the fly-sheet, the book itself had not been read. Packaging was amazing and very prompt service...very impressed!
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