Hair extensions are an ancient art

Posted by Jo Roberts on August 31, 2011

According to some recent research from Manchester University, hair extensions have been around for a very, very long time.  A study on mummies from the Pharaonic period has revealed that the ancient Egyptians cared just as much about their beauty regimes as we do today, using styling products, curling tongs and hair extensions to create a range of different looks.

The lead researcher, Dr Natalie McCreesh observed how one of the mummies in the study had quite short hair: “we joked that she looked like Marilyn Monroe” while others had longer, curlier styles “a bit like Rihanna”.

Both the products and the techniques used to style the Egyptians’ hair were basically the same as those we use ourselves, today.  Hair extensions were braided in much the same way as modern wefts and their ‘gel’ was made up of a fatty substance.

The study just goes to show that beauty and styling has been an important part of our lives for a very long time now – who would have thought that the Ancient Egyptians went to such great lengths to look fabulous?

Our picture features Katy Perry wearing her hair extensions in an ancient Egyptian style, in one of her recent videos.

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