It was the era of the parisienne, the professional French beauty, famous worldwide for her looks. Whole lives were devoted to it. Some went so far as to have their skin painted or enameled, a practice which sometimes led to facial paralysis, blood poisoning and even death. One social observer noted, "In Paris, half the female population lives off fashion, while the other half lives for fashion." In the late 1870s a stunningly beautiful parisienne, Amélie Gautreau, dominated the social landscape....