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Skin abnormalities in the National Portrait Gallery
Author(s) -
Strauss RM,
MarzoOrtega H,
Goulden V
Publication year - 2004
Publication title -
journal of the european academy of dermatology and venereology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.655
H-Index - 107
eISSN - 1468-3083
pISSN - 0926-9959
DOI - 10.1111/j.1468-3083.2004.01024.x
Subject(s) - medicine , portrait , dermatology , art history , art
ABSTRACT Pathological changes in the human body have long been recognised in painting. To assess the frequency of potential physical abnormalities reflected in paintings, we reviewed portraits on display at one visit in the National Portrait Gallery in London. We identified a number of possible abnormalities, most of them dermatological, with the commonest finding being small facial papular lesions, most likely representing either common warts or dermal naevi. This exercise however, reflects a subjective interpretation of the different artists's perceptions of their models’ physical appearances.