Fashionable Complexion: Queen Elizabeth I and Venetian Ceruse
Queen Elizabeth I wasn’t just a revered English ruler, she used fashion to represent the strength and wealth of her realm. English fashion favored light hair (fortunately she had the red hair of her father, Henry VIII), hooded eyes, and the Queen used Venetian Ceruse makeup to get her famous porcelain skin. The white lead in Venetian Ceruse wasn’t instantly lethal, but the toxins slowly accumulated over time. If Queen Elizabeth I experienced the common side effects of her glamorous makeup, she would have faced skin discoloration, hair loss, and her teeth would have rotted into discolored nubs. But there was a solution to this problem – slather more of the bright white makeup over the mangled skin, until the pockmarked, leathery skin was no longer visible. This “solution” made the problem worse, of course, but it looked good! Venetian Ceruse holds the Guinness World Record for “Most toxic makeup.”