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
SUNBATHING OTTER
A lazy otter finds the ideal spot to soak up the sun and sleep off his lunch .
AMAZING PANCAKE CREATIONS
From squids to Star Wars, these flipping marvellous creations are pancake portraits .
SHIVERING SQUIRREL
THIS LITTLE squirrel tries to keep himself snug as snow starts to fall around him .
FIGHTING FOX IS BEATEN BY EAGLES
A fox takes a tumble and lands on his head when he tries to fend off a pair of eagles in Japan .
BABY WORKOUT
FROM a Kung-Fu professional to a mini incredible hulk, these are the babies you wouldn't want to mess with .
NOSEY POLAR BEAR INSPECTS TOURIST'S TRUCK
STANDING on its hind legs, a nosey polar bear presses its paws against the window of a truck and takes a peek at the tourist inside .
STUNNING SUMATRAN TIGER CAUSES A SPLASH
BURSTING from the water, a beautiful but deadly Sumatran tiger jumps for food in an Indonesian zoo .
HUNDREDS OF HOT AIR BALLOONS DECORATE TURKISH SKY
HUNDREDS of hot air balloons decorate the sky above Turkey as the rising sun illuminates the spectacular scenery below .
ANGER AS BLOCKBUSTER ADVERTISES EMPLOYEES JOBS TO MAKE THEM “WORK HARDER”
Struggling home entertainment chain Blockbuster has been slammed for advertising its workers' jobs while they are still in them in order to scare them into working harder .
WOMAN REVEALS HOW BOTCHED £280 EYE LIFT LEFT HER SCARRED FOR LIFE
A woman has been left scarred for life after a botched eye lift burnt her eyelids .
CAMOUFLAGED NORTHERN POTOO BIRD IS A MASTER OF DISGUISE
A northern potoo shows it is a master of disguise as it perches on a tree stump and blends into the bark .