The German museum “Panoptikum” in Hamburg has presented a new wax figure of the late Queen Elizabeth II, which immediately sparked lively discussion due to its unusual appearance. Visitors noticed that a portion of the wig is missing from the top of the figure’s head, revealing a noticeable bald patch.
This is reported by Finway
Reasons for the Figure’s Unusual Appearance
Museum representatives explained that real human hair was used to create the figure, which is very expensive. For this reason, hair is only added to the areas visible during the viewing of the exhibit. Since Queen Elizabeth II almost always wore hats at public events, the museum deemed it unnecessary to fully cover the crown with hair, which is typically hidden under headwear.
Explanation from the Museum’s Management
Dr. Susanna Feierber, the managing partner of the museum, commented on the situation, emphasizing that when creating wax figures, they always focus on the appearance that will be visible to visitors. Since the crown of the figure is hidden under a hat, additional hair was not used there.
“Since we use real human hair for our wax figures, which is very expensive, some figures in hats do not have their hair fully preserved. This is a wax copy, not a real person, and this is something that should always be remembered,” she commented.
The museum emphasizes that they strive to recreate the appearance of historical figures as realistically as possible, taking into account the details visible to the audience. The case of the figure of Queen Elizabeth II has drawn attention to the specifics of creating such exhibits and the cost of materials used in museum work.