KILLED BY MAKE-UP - TRAGIC 18th CENTURY CELEB'S MIRROR AUCTIONED
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.
Other great stories
UNLIKELY FRIENDSHIP
A brave cricket takes his chances as he sits on top of this green papua tree frog .
KILLED BY MAKE-UP - TRAGIC 18th CENTURY CELEB'S MIRROR AUCTIONED
She was the 18th century celebrity who made men faint in awe of her beauty by her very presence .
FUNERAL COMPANY MAKE DIAMONDS FROM CREMATED REMAINS
SPARKLING bright inside their box, it’s hard to believe these diamonds are made from the cremated remains of the deceased .
FLYING PENGUINS LEAP OUT OF THE OCEAN
Leaping out of the ocean, a group of gentoo penguins fly through the air before landing safely on an iceberg .
POLE-DANCING MUM CELEBRATES PREGNANCIES WITH WACKY STUNTS
A mum has celebrated each of her four pregnancies with a host of wacky stunts - including acrobatics, aerial contortion, pole-dancing and risque photo shoots .
STUNNING CONTRAST OF ENGLISH SETTINGS
CONTRASTING settings reveal some of England’s most beautiful landscapes in all their glory .
POPE MOBBED BY THOUSANDS OF WORSHIPPERS IN RIO
POPE MOBBED BY THOUSANDS OF WORSHIPPERS IN RIO - Thousands of worshippers gather to celebrate the Papal visit on Copacabana beach, Rio de Janeiro ,Brazil .
LIFE-LIKE PENCIL DRAWINGS
AT first glance these images could easily be mistaken for photographs, but they are in-fact real life drawings created using nothing but coloured pencils .
BIG FOOT 'JESUS BIRD'
THIS BIGFOOT 'Jesus bird' may look silly, but he's perfectly designed for walking on water .
HUMAN CCTV COP BUSTS 130 CRIMINALS
Meet the human CCTV: a PCSO with a memory for faces so sharp he has apprehended more than 130 suspects in the last year alone with his eagle eyed talents .
PORCUPINES COME CLOSE TO VICTORY AGAINST PRIDE OF HUNGRY LIONS
Jostling their quills into the noses of some unlucky cubs, this is the moment two feisty porcupines ALMOST defeat a pride of seven lions .