Siamese Beauty' from Maxwell
Sommerville's on the Meinam
"Females of Thailand, the last truly attractive women in the civilised world." So wrote John Arnone of Yasothon in the Bangkok Post on August 3rd. Few would disagree with him. It is only necessary to watch television soap operas or look at the many fashion magazines, full of daras, to see that Thai girls are of unsurpassed beauty - and to prove it we have had two Miss Universes - Apasara and Pui.
But it was not always so.
"The Siamese ladies may without the smallest fear of competition proclaim themselves to be the ugliest race of females upon the face of the globe." So wrote F. A. Neale after a visit in 1852.
What is it that has changed? Is it the females of Thailand or is it the western perception of beauty?
The first account of Thai women written in English was by Ralph Fitch, merchant of London, who came overland to Chiang Mai from Pegu in 1586. All he said was that "the women of Jamahey (Chiang Mai) are much fairer than those of Pegu." This was a fact that has been acknowledged down the centuries until today. Queen Dara Rasami of Chiang Mai was one of King Chulalongkorn's favourites and most nobles had a Lao mia noi from the north.
Monsieur De La Loubere, Envoy Extraordinary from the French King in 1688, had this to say. “Except the pagne, which reaches half way down their leg, the women go all naked. Nevertheless so great a nudity renders them not immodest.”
“'Tis true that the breasts of the Siamese women uphold not themselves and hang down rather to the navel; but otherwise their body is well proportioned and their hanging breasts offend not the eyes of their husbands. The Siamese are rather small, than great, but their bodies are well proportioned. The shape of their faces participate less of the oval than of the lozenge; it is broad and high at the cheek-bones and all of a sudden their forehead contracts and terminates almost as much in a point as their chin. Their mouths are large, their lips thick and pale and their teeth blackened.”
In 1867 the Marquis de Beauvoir wrote, "they shave their heads, leaving on the point of the skull an oval tuft, close cropped and above the size of your two hands; it gives a kind of cocky, stuck-up look which is very queer. The race which is unmixed is very hideous: flat noses, mere slits for eyes, prominent cheek-bones a complexion the colour of tobacco, enormous mouths, gums bleeding from the use of betel-nut, and of very small stature (less than 5 foot).”
"I was charmed by the children from the very first moment, but it distracts me to think that some day they will become as ugly as their mothers, and that is saying a good deal!"
P.A.Thompson, in 1910, came to Bangkok to promote American trade. "There are over 300 automobiles in Bangkok and not a single one of American make. Old and young all chew the betel nut. The effect upon their teeth is, in time, to coat them with a black shiny enamel which acts as a preservative, but the lime causes the gums to shrink away, so that the teeth appear long and protruding. This is particularly noticeable amongst the women, and the habit quickly destroys their good looks.”
"Love of colour is marked by good taste and fine harmony in the arrangement of what little adorns their fair forms. Some of them will deny themselves necessary covering, and even food, that they may indulge in rings, arm bands, and other jewellery."
It is certainly true that the farangs who came to the East were intolerant, bigoted and narrow-minded as far as religion, morality and government were concerned, but they could appreciate beauty when they saw it, and they did not see it in the females of Siam.
Let us try and analyse the two cultures.
1) Hygiene and cleanliness. Without exception visitors remarked on the extraordinary fact that the Siamese bathed two or three times a day.
There were no baths at Versailles and Europeans covered up their unwashed smell with perfume and controlled the lice with powder. My college at Oxford had no baths until 1910. The President, when asked about this, replied that they were not necessary since the terms were only eight weeks long.
2) Hair. Without doubt one of the most unattractive features of Siamese girls was their hair style.
But compare it with the ridiculous and unhygienic creations of the European beauties.
We should owe an enormous debt of gratitude to Sunsilk, L'Oreal and all those who have given us natural hair.
3) Oral hygiene.
From Shakespearean times onwards, and certainly before, bad breath and decayed teeth, have been an enormous curse. The Siamese, and other people in the East, have attempted to solve the problem by chewing betel nut.
This prevents bad breath, as well as giving a sense of wellbeing, but it makes the mouth red and hideous, and the teeth black. This more than anything made Europeans consider the Siamese to be ugly. Siamese girls scraped their teeth and coated them with a lacquer to make them even blacker - only dogs had white teeth. We owe a tremendous debt of thanks to Mr. Colgate.
When we look at early photographs of Royal Consorts and other Siamese and Lao beauties it would indeed be unwise to enter them for a Miss Universe contest.
What has happened to raise the girls of Thailand from the bottom of the table of beauty to the very top?
It is, I think, inter-marriage, first with Chinese and, more recently, with farangs. There can be few educated Thais who do not have Chinese blood in their veins and there are few models and film stars who are not luk krung. - half Caucasian.
Better diet has increased the average height by several inches. The surgeon's knife has changed many a nose and not a few eyes and breasts. A hundred years ago, coming from a red mouth full of black teeth, the famous Thai smile can not have been so bewitching.
By John Shaw
