Venetiaanse vrouw die het haar bleekt in de zon 1598

This is an engraving of a Venetian woman bleaching her hair in the sun, crafted by Christoph Krieger. The scene captures a beauty practice common in Renaissance Venice, where women sought to lighten their hair using the sun's rays. Notice the woman’s pose and attire. The wide-brimmed hat, designed to protect her face while exposing her hair, connects to similar head coverings found in ancient depictions of solar rituals. This act of sun-bleaching is not merely vanity but a symbolic engagement with light. Across time, we see the allure of blonde hair linked to ideals of purity, divinity, and status. From ancient goddesses with golden locks to Renaissance paintings of fair-haired angels, the connection between light and beauty persists. The act of altering one’s appearance to capture this ideal taps into deep-seated desires for transformation and elevation. It’s a dance between the self and the symbolic power of light, continuously re-enacted across the ages.