Nefertiti: An Unconventional Mummy

Nefertiti is one of Ancient Egypt's most famous queens, ruling beside the Pharaoh with unprecedented equality. She and her husband turned the country on its head by instituting a new, controversial religion, and literally uprooting the capitol city, while redefining art and culture. But her death and burial are shrouded in mystery, and not even 21st century science and tech have been able to solve the riddle of just where, exactly, her notorious mummy ended up...

Further Reading:

• Nefertiti (Biography.com)
• Nefertiti As Sensual Goddess (Harvard Gazette)
• Bust of Queen Nefertiti (Egyptian Museum Berlin)

The Secret History of Underwear!!

We're making a sexy splash with our fall premiere, because haven't you always wanted to know just what ladies have been wearing under their street clothes throughout the ages? Linen strips, breast bags, knickerbockers, and girdles, we've got you covered! (Wink.)

Further Reading:

• A History of Lingerie (Random History)
• Medieval Underwear (HistoryExtra)
• A Brief History of Underwear (Stylist)
• How to Undress a Victorian Lady in Your Next Historical Romance (Wall Street Journal)

Makeup: A COLOURFUL History!!

What do ancient Egyptian kohl, nail polish in imperial China, and red lipstick during World War II have in common? They're three of the many ways makeup has been used in human history for practical and social purposes! There might just be more meaning behind the history of makeup than you would notice at first blush...

Further Reading:

• A History of Cosmetics from Ancient Times (Cosmetics Info)
• How Makeup Works (How Stuff Works)
• Lisa Eldridge makeup history video (Teen Vogue)
• Vintage Looks, Icons, & Make-up History (Lisa Eldridge - video playlist)
• Mascara For the Gods: A History of Make-up - The Ancient World (Culture Shock)
• Mascara For the Gods: A History of Make-up - The Modern World (Culture Shock)

The Bikini: An EXPLOSIVE History!

It turns out that the bikini has a surprisingly long and atomic history; to trace the roots of this iconic bit of swimwear Heather and Dayna head back to ancient Rome and watch women's bathing costumes shrink through the 19th and 20th centuries. Just in time for beach season!

Further Reading:

• The History of the Bikini (Elle)
• A Brief History of the Bikini (Slate)
• Beautiful, But (Sometimes) Horrible - A History of Women's Swimwear (Refinery29)
• The Bikini's Inventor Guessed How Much it would Horrify the Public (Smithsonian)
• The Fraught History of Princess Leia's Infamous Bikini (Washington Post)
• Jessica Rey: The Evolution of the Swimsuit (Q Ideas - video)

Amazons: Myth? Fact? Both??

Was there really an ancient society of brutal female warriors? Or was it all a scary-sexy invention of the Greek imagination, much like our modern obsession with vampires? Like a lot of history, the truth may be somewhere in between... and the modern postscript to the Amazon story is pretty intriguing! 

Further Reading:

• Amazons (The New International Encyclopedia)
• Amazon Warrior Women (Secrets of the Dead - documentary)
• The Amazon Women: Is There Any Truth Behind the Myth? (Smithsonian Magazine)