She was the 18th century celebrity who made men faint in awe of her beauty by her very presence. But her beauty - and her vanity - led to her demise as the lead-based make-up she insisted on plastering on daily resulted first in the loss of her looks, then deadly blood poisoning. Now the grand 7ft mirror in which Maria Gunning, the former Countess of Coventry, admired her stunning reflection has been auctioned off for more than £300,000. Labelled the first victim of vanity, Maria died aged 27 in 1760 after her love of make-up resulted in her untimely death. The 253-year-old mirror sold well above its estimate even though her condition meant she the society hostess used it for a matter of just months. A glorious George II giltwood overmantel design, it was bought for her by her husband The Sixth Earl of Coventry in 1759, who is said to have been so frustrated by his wife's love of make up that he would chase her around the dinner table with a handkerchief, trying wipe it from her face.
AN EXERCISING turtle and an ice-skating chick are hardly everyday exploits in the animal community .
A little brown bear cub shows his doting mum that she is always on parent duty as he uses her as a scratching post .
AN Irish woman has become the first adult in the world to receive a revolutionary REMOTE CONTROLLED 'ROBO SPINE', which uses magnets to combat the effects of scoliosis .
An adorable black bear cub struggles to find the perfect spot for an afternoon nap as he wriggles around on the branch of a maple tree .
A mum-of-two has revealed how she accidentally set her face on fire while lighting a cigarette .
It's incredible to think anyone could live in such horrendous squalor - yet two men have been prosecuted for keeping their homes in such revolting conditions that it was no longer fit for their animals .
A young mum has told how a phantom pregnancy almost destroyed her dream of having a second child .
ONCE A doctor’s surgery, family home and office, an array of medical equipment is scattered throughout this abandoned home .
More weather chaos is heading our way, with ice and snow already hitting areas across Birmingham .
A small Indian monkey is seemingly gob-smacked after reading the latest stock market news .
Some will get up close and personal with Mother Nature’s deadliest animals to get the perfect shot, posing the question, what lengths will a photographer go to for that all important picture? But in this case, the question should be what depths .
AFTER splashing out on sexy black lingerie, Paige Way was excited for a romantic night away at a swanky hotel with her boyfriend .