When I do wear make-up, I tend towards smoky eyes. I think it¹s because I spend my days looking at mummies with kohl around their eyes. I¹ve just been studying recipes for kohl from the Bronze Age. It was made from charred almond shell and had three main purposes: to beautify; to be used as a sun block, which is why they put it on so thickly around the eyes; and sometimes it contained insect repellent.

Queens of the late Bronze Age, like Helen of Troy, would cover their face, forearms and breasts in white lead. Most of them were dead by the age of 28 if it wasn¹t something else then the lead poisoning would have killed them. These women also used to paint red suns on their cheeks and chin. They would have looked like ghoulish clowns. If I¹m filming I wear grey eyeshadow and a purply charcoal eyeliner from MAC called Smut. I also wear purple mascara. I think it¹s flattering because my eyelashes are so dark. I wear a blusher from MAC called Peaches.

As a base, I use Bobbi Brown Tinted Moisturiser because I¹m generally out filming in hot places and it acts as a kind of barrier. I also use YSL Touche Eclat. It¹s great as you can be on the Tube, realise how bad your bags look, and do something about it. My beauty icon has to be Helen of Troy. We don¹t know what she looked like, so she becomes the ideal of beauty for every age, from looking like Cleopatra to a blonde bombshell.

Rebecca Ley

Historian Bettany Hughes's biography, Helen of Troy: Goddess, Princess, Whore, is available now

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