So, for a woman to have breasts, she would almost have to have been overweight. Thus explaining why Renaissance paintings seem to depict predominantly overweight women. It's not because the painter liked fat, but because he liked breasts.
I've noted something similar in Japanese TV and movies. The "big breasted" characters are often chubby.
Due to nutritional and other factors, women in Renaissance times reached puberty much later than girls today, and their bodies developed at a stunted rate. This much is known fact. The question is, how widespread was flat-chestedness? Was it so widespread that it would have been "common knowledge" that only overweight women have breasts?
Please provide historical sources.
2007-06-08
02:32:17
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9 answers
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asked by
Sabrina H
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