Queen Nefertiti bust may have had a facelift

I thought that was interesting when they mentioned that on the series Ancients Behaving Badly on the History network. Interesting what you can learn that way.

Influenced by an ancient ancestor of Hugh Hefner no doubt. Maybe the sculptor thought if he depicted her as perfect, she would get more respect.

Maybe the sculptor thought if he depicted her as perfect, she would get more respect. Maybe sculptor gets more money for a prettier statue

Royal portrait painters in past were basically paid to flatter the sitter - for example, Queen Elizabeth I was painted as a young woman well into her older years, and Henry VIII married his fourth wife Anne of Cleves on the strength of a Holbein portrait of her that was probably very flattering to poor Anne, who was almost immediately rejected by Henry as ugly when he finally met her. In a lot of cases, this 'flattery' was about the image that the monarch wished to project to their subjects and to other, rival royals. Almost controlling their press, if you will. Perhaps this was the case here?

Royal portrait painters in past were basically paid to flatter the sitter - for example, Queen Elizabeth I was painted as a young woman well into her older years, and Henry VIII married his fourth wife Anne of Cleves on the strength of a Holbein portrait of her that was probably very flattering to poor Anne, who was almost immediately rejected by Henry as ugly when he finally met her. In a lot of cases, this 'flattery' was about the image that the monarch wished to project to their subjects and to other, rival royals. Almost controlling their press, if you will. Perhaps this was the case here?... [More]