alexandra

They legitimised their rule with whitened propagandistic portraits and even painted their faces white. Interestingly Queen Alexandra, wife of Edward VII (1901-1911) was known for her ‘enamelling,’ painting her face white or pink with zinc oxide. Enameling also featured faked blue veins, to highten the illusion of extreme whiteness. Former generation would use lead white or arsenic, which also acted as bleaching agents. They would not need white make-up or bleaching if they were whites, and photographs show both Alexandra, her family and Edward as dark coloured