![]() In archaeology, these types of artifacts are called “Venus figurines”, due to the belief that prehistoric depictions of nude women with exaggerated sexual features represented an early fertility goddess. Swami writes that this advantage is “supported by the archaeological record of Venus figurines – such as the ‘Venus of Willendorf’ from the late Stone Age – which suggests that between ten and 100,000 years ago, the ideal female figure was robust and round.” Food shortages and challenging environments meant that those who were able to increase their body mass likely had an advantage over others in terms of health and fertility, notes Viren Swami, Professor of Social Psychology at Anglia Ruskin University. ![]() ![]() Peering into the past to examine the ‘ideal’ female form in prehistory, we may see a very different picture than our modern one. This 0.7:1 waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), it turns out, also reflects a distribution of abdominal fat associated with good health and fertility,” explains Rob Brooks, in What Science Tells Us About the ‘Ideal’ Body Shape for Women.īut how did ancient people recognize an ideal body before science told us what to think about it? The Birth of Venus In other words: “ famously demonstrated that images of women with waists 70% as big as their hips tend to be most attractive. Three studies show that men judge women with low WHR as attractive.” Scientists suggest this enduring look may be based on body measurements that seem to cross cultural boundaries and ages.ĭevendra Singh, professor of Psychology at the University of Texas calculated in the 1990s that, “body fat distribution as measured by waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) is correlated with youthfulness, reproductive endocrinologic status, and long-term health risk in women. In our modern era, supermodels – supposedly the pinnacle of ideal female body types - tend to have a very well-known, slender look. (Ultimate Destiny / Public Domain) Modern Ideal (Or that’s what was said at least, but Venus had other plans.) Growing bored with the conversation, the 12 Olympians decided that rather than quibble about the minute details of body attractiveness, they’d simply let the humans fight it out on earth. What should women look like? What mathematical percentage of body-fat distribution would be the fittest and most attractive? They’d come up with the idea of humans, but they couldn’t decide what might look best. Their disagreement of that day? Waist-to-hip ratio. High on Mount Olympus the gods sat quarrelling. Who started this ‘ideal body’ thing anyway? Perhaps we could start by blaming the gods. Is it Kim Kardashian, with her popular ‘internet-breaking’ big behind, or Marilyn Monroe with her voluptuous movie curves? Is it a powerful and athletic Beyoncé? What about the waif-like, angular fashion models on the catwalks? For thousands of years, we’ve been changing our minds about what the perfect body looks like. We all know what the perfect woman’s body looks like.
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