" (E.W. Lane, _Arabian Society in the Middle Ages_,
1883, pp. 214-216.)
A Persian treatise on the figurative terms relating to beauty
shows that the hair should be black, abundant, and wavy, the
eyebrows dark and arched. The eyelashes also must be dark, and
like arrows from the bow of the eyebrows. There is, however, no
insistence on the blackness of the eyes. We hear of four
varieties of eye: the dark-gray eye (or narcissus eye); the
narrow, elongated eye of Turkish beauties; the languishing, or
love-intoxicated, eye; and the wine-colored eye. Much stress is
laid on the quality of brilliancy. The face is sometimes
described as brown, but more especially as white and rosy. There
are many references to the down on the lips, which is described
as greenish (sometimes bluish) and compared to herbage. This down
and that on the cheeks and the stray hairs near the ears were
regarded as very great beauties. A beauty spot on the chin,
cheek, or elsewhere was also greatly admired, and evoked many
poetic comparisons. The mouth must be very small. In stature a
beautiful woman must be tall and erect, like the cypress or the
maritime pine.
Pages:
268
269
270
271
272
273
274
275
276
277
278
279
280
281
282
283
284
285
286
287
288
289
290
291
292