Sculpted wigs = rats

In the royal courts of the 1800s, a woman's wig was more art than hair. They grew bigger and more elaborate as stylists spent hours designing and sculpting all the fashionable ladies of the time (think Marie Antoinette). Here's the gross part: In order to keep the wigs in place, they often used lard. And unlike hairspray, lard tends to attract rats. It got so bad that some women even wore cages over their wigs while they slept to keep the rats away. Sounds ... uncomfortable.