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
TRAINEE DOC DUMPED FOR BEING CHUBBY - NOW HE'S A HUNKY BODYBUILDER
A medical student has gone from chunky to hunky after being dumped by his ex- girlfriend for being too 'chubby' .
SQUIRRELS SQUABBLE OVER LUNCH
SQUABBLING over the last piece of grain, these hungry squirrels are determined to stock up on as much food as possible .
1940’S PHOTOSHOPPING MACHINE
CREATED over 60 years ago, this weighty machine was the Photoshop of its time .
GIRL NICKNAMED JAWS BITES BACK AFTER SURGERY
A GIRL nicknamed JAWS by bullies who taunted her because of her underbite is em-bracing her new post-surgery life .
DUBAI FROM THE SKY
A HEIGHT-addicted airline pilot has taken pictures of the Dubai from 1,300-feet .
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 .
SWASTIKA'S SPRAYED ON MOSQUE
Pic By HotSpot Media - SWASTIKA’S SPRAYED ON MOSQUE - RACIST graffiti including swastikas have been emblazoned on a £2 .
DIABULIMIA LEFT ME INFERTILE AND GOING BLIND
For years Jeorgia Woodd, 30, abused her body, having succumbed to a condition known as 'diabulimia' .
WOMAN WEARS SAME TEE FOR A YEAR FOR DAUGHTER WHO CAN’T SPEAK
A mum-of-two has worn the same t-shirt for an entire year to raise awareness of a 1 in 7 million condition that prevents her daughter from talking .
AMAZING PEN ART
FROM THE world famous Girl with a Pearl Earring painting to a jaguar in the grass, these incredible drawings are created from coloured ballpoint pens .
SIBLING RIVALRY
SURROUNDED by a snowstorm, these young polar bears battle the elements - as well as each other .