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.
A retired foster carer has spent a whopping £48k on her brood of lifelike dolls .
Swimming side by side with divers, these manatees will do anything they can to stay warm .
When personal trainer, Victoria Spence dreamt of achieving a thigh gap, she didn't realise her obsession would leave her body gripped by anorexia .
A group of otters put on a show of aqua aerobics, as they raise their flippers perfectly in sync .
From the crisp, snow clad mountains to vivid bright blue rivers, these breath-taking photographs capture the incredible beauty of various landscapes across France and Italy .
SHOWING off her best assets for the camera, this cheeky orangutan is in the mood for love, puckering up her lips to blow the biggest kiss she can .
A former soldier who bravely took on penny-pinching NHS bosses in his fight against terminal cancer has died, aged 37 .
From giant mountains to vast deserts, an American photographer spent a year capturing the diverse and beautiful landscape of the United States .
THIS incredible shimmer of silver fish mirrors the image of that of an underwater tornado .
NEW DELHI, A woman activist of India's main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party crosses a police barricade near the residence of ruling Congress party chief Sonia Gandhi during a protest against the recent rape of a five-year-old girl in New Delhi, India, April 21, 2013 .
This is the moment a puffin delved into the ocean and bit off more than he could chew to collect a beak full of fish .
A quiet Himalayan mountain village springs to life for a colourful Buddhist festival designed to expel evil spirits and bring happiness .