It’s A Beauty Calibrator!
This tortuous looking device is a beauty calibrator or “micrometer”, made in 1932 by makeup mogul Max Factor, the father of the modern cosmetics industry.
A bizarre union of beauty and phrenology, this one-of-a-kind device was meant to be used as a tool for Hollywood make up artists, who could measure a starlet’s face against “perfect” facial proportions and use heavy make up to correct her facial shape flaws. Made of flexible metal strips, it is held against the head using set screws and will supposedly reveal flaws naked to the human eye that could be exaggerated on the movie screen.
