17th and 18th centuries

How was the fashion for powdered wigs in the 17th and 18th centuries connected to syphilis?

Wigs have been worn for a variety of aesthetic and health reasons since the beginning of recorded history

- gaining or decreasing in popularity during different time periods and in different countries. In the 17th and 18th centuries, however, their popularity was partly tied to the spread of syphilis. The venereal disease - which first swept across Europe in the 15th century - had a myriad of symptoms including open sores, hair loss and rashes. Wigs were a way to hide the visible manifestations of syphilis.

Powdering a wig with starch, household flour or scented powders also helped to mask the smell of any open ulcers. While sporting a powdered wig didn't necessarily indicate that the wearer had the venereal disease, a recent paper did estimate

their mid-thirties.

Source ~ Lucy Jane Santos, historian specialising in health and beauty