Madame Tussaud: A Wax Legacy
The story of one of the world's most famous and colorful entrepreneurs.
A look into the life, times and personal challenges of a woman far ahead of the period in which she lived.
In many ways, the lady whose real name was Marie Grosholtz, was a woman far beyond the times in which she lived. Of poor origins, she learned the art of wax modeling from her mother's employer, Dr. Phillip Curtius, who recognized her keen intelligence and innate talent for working with the wax figures that he used to illustrate anatomy.
Dr. Curtius taught his eager pupil everything she needed to know to open her first exhibit, which she did in the late 1700s. His connections brought her to the royal court of Versailles, which was in the throes of its famous Reign of Terror. Here she perfected her craft by making death masks of the likes of Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI to name a few. She was slated for death by execution and shared a cell with Josephine de Beauharnais, the future wife of Napoleon Bonaparte. The two managed to escape the guillotine together and remained friends for the rest of their lives.
Madame Tussaud (her married name) was a brilliant businesswoman in addition to being an immensely talented sculptress. Her exhibits have lasted for more than two hundred years and her name today draws crowds and is still synonymous with incredibly life-like wax reproductions of the rich and famous. No one has ever come close to her skill in working with wax figures, and it is unlikely that anyone ever will.
Read all about the life of this most fascinating woman.
