Violet is a unique human eye color. The majority of people have eyes of brown, blue, hazel or green. Violet eyes, by contrast, are rarely seen.
There was one famous exception. The eyes of Elizabeth Taylor, the 20th-century movie star, looked violet or purple in some scenes. Then again, her eyes looked dark blue in other shots.
Did Taylor truly have violet eyes? Are violet eyes real? Let’s dig a little deeper.
Where does violet eye color come from?
Eye color is considered by some to be puzzling by nature. Did you know blue eyes aren’t really blue? The mystery only deepens when we’re talking about violet or purple eyes.
The iris, the tinted part of your eye, contains melanin, the same substance that colors your skin and your hair. The people of Kenya, for instance, have far more melanin than their counterparts in Denmark. This helps explain why the majority of Africans have dark skin and brown eyes, while many Europeans have light skin and blue eyes.
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The irises of blue-eyed people have no blue tint. Blue, it turns out, is in the eye of the beholder. You see it for the same reason the sky looks blue. Light waves get scattered in the earth’s atmosphere and in the irises of some humans. This makes the sky and some people’s eyes appear blue.
Violet is an actual but rare eye color that is a form of blue eyes. It requires a very specific type of structure in the iris to produce the type of light scattering of melanin pigment to create the violet appearance.
Blue eyes are a recent arrival in human history. Some scientists believe all blue-eyed people trace their genetic heritage to a single mutation that happened perhaps 10,000 years ago. If so, then it’s likely that a certain cinema icon was among that ancient person’s progeny.
What’s up with Elizabeth Taylor’s violet eyes?
Born in 1932, Elizabeth Taylor was a well-known movie star of the 1950s through the 1970s. Whether she was playing Cleopatra or the spouse of an oil baron, one constant ran through all of her closeups: the shade of her eyes.
Depending on the lighting, makeup, wardrobe and sets, her close-ups reveal eyes somewhere between violet and dark blue. In her Oscar-nominated role in “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof,” she co-stars with Paul Newman, famous for his light-blue eyes. It’s hard to imagine a more pronounced contrast in eye color.
But what do we truly know about Taylor’s eyes? You can scan a collection of magazine pictures to see for yourself. You’ll find an array of tones in the dark-blue range.
Like everybody’s eyes, Taylor’s looked different depending on the context. Blouses, scarves and mascara accentuate the dark blue or play it down. Photographers’ lighting techniques do much the same.
Whether deep blue or violet, Taylor’s eyes were often considered to be distinctive.
Violet eyes don’t have to be so rare
If you’d like to achieve a similar effect to Elizabeth Taylor’s eye color, you might consider trying colored contact lenses. Make sure you understand the contact lens basics and the fundamentals of choosing the right lenses for your eyes and your lifestyle.
Of course, you need to see an eye doctor for an assessment of your vision before you try out any new contacts. And remember, you need a valid contact lens prescription to purchase lenses in the United States.
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