These days we know that soaking up the sun can wreak havoc on our skin, but that wasn’t always the case. Why did having a suntan ever become popular in the first place? Here, we’ve uncovered the surprising history behind getting a golden glow.
While the ancient Egyptians worshipped the sun god Ra, they weren’t so into tanned skin — women are depicted as paler than men in Egyptian art, their fair skin a sign of beauty. Sunbathing was a part of the scene at public baths for some Roman men, and they even had a word for it: apricatio. But for most of human history, tanning wasn’t considered a beauty ritual.
During the Middle Ages in Europe, it was hip to be pale — upper class women (and most famously, Queen Elizabeth) used lead-based cosmetics to make their complexions as white as possible, and some even drew on blue veins to mimic skin so pale it’s translucent.
A suntan started to become associated with good health in the late 19th century. Way before Shailene Woodley was sunning her ladyparts, a Swiss natural healer named Arnold Rikli was touting the benefits of soaking up sunlight and fresh air while naked. In 1855, he opened a health resort in the Slovenian countryside to treat various ailments; he’s also credited with kicking off the nudist movement.
Before long, heliotherapy was being used to treat tuberculosis, rickets and lupus. Before he created Corn Flakes, John Harvey Kellogg also invented the first sun bed in 1891. His “incandescent light bath” and similar contraptions became a popular medical treatment in the U.S. and Europe throughout the early 20th century.
Photo: from the Dr. John Harvey Kellogg Discovery Center via TripAdvisor
By the 1910s and ‘20s, sunbathing was a favorite leisure activity among the upper classes — including Coco Chanel, who is widely credited with starting the fad for a suntan after returning to Paris a few shades crispier from a holiday on the French Riviera.
Meanwhile, Parisians had grown smitten with the African-American entertainer Josephine Baker, who was famous for dancing, singing and showing plenty of skin onstage. Her caramel complexion convinced Europeans that brown is beautiful.
In 1928, perfumer Jean Patou created the first tanning oil. His Huile de Chaldée, a blend of oils scented with narcissus, orange flower and amber, promised to leave sunkissed skin golden — not red.
In 1935, French chemist Eugène Schueller, who founded the company that would later become L’Oréal, introduced the first modern sunscreen. Ambre Solaire was designed to prevent sunburn while still allowing skin to tan. But it wasn't until 1986 that sunscreen technology would produce the first SPF 15, now considered the bare minimum for burn prevention.
A few years later in 1960, Coppertone debuted its first sunless tanner called Quick Tan or QT. QT used the same active ingredient — dihydroxyacetone or DHA — that self-tanners use today, albeit in a much less sophisticated formula. It turned skin an unfortunate shade of Oompa Loompa orange.
The modern indoor tanning bed was introduced in 1978. Thirty years later, in 2009, an arm of the World Health Organization released a report that classified tanning beds as highly carcinogenic. Northern Ireland was the first region to ban tanning bed use for people under 18 in 2012. Other European countries and a number of U.S. states have followed suit.
We’ve known that tanning can be harmful for decades, but a 2013 study showed just how bad UV rays can be for our vanity. Researchers found that ultraviolet exposure is responsible for 80 percent of skin aging — a fact that could put a wrinkle in your summer plans.
Of course, it's possible to look sunkissed without actually being so. Guerlain created Terracotta, the world’s first bronzing powder, in 1984. Today, one Terracotta Bronzing Powder is sold every 20 seconds around the world.
You’re probably familiar with the farmer tan — white as snow shoulders paired with sun-browned forearms. But have you heard of the trucker tan? It’s like a farmer tan, but only on the driver’s side arm. You can get a Texas tan from wearing a tank top in the sun (cover it up with a Texas tuxedo). If your strappy sandals have left your feet zebra striped, you have a Franciscan tan, which is named after the sandal-wearing monks of the Franciscan order.
Today, beauty-conscious folks are becoming more and more reluctant to tan — particularly in skincare-obsessed China, where these sun protective ski masks have become popular at the beach. Go ahead and laugh, but we bet these ladies will be the ones smiling — sans crow’s feet — 20 years down the road.
