A dark patch or mark on something; historically, a beauty mark worn by 17th-18th century Europeans as a fashionable accessory.
From black (color) + patch (a small piece or spot). The beauty mark usage emerged in Elizabethan times, reaching peak fashion in the 1600s-1700s as a mark of sophistication.
Beauty patches were genius fashion branding — nobles wore them to hide pockmarks from disease, but the patches became status symbols showing you were wealthy enough to afford cosmetics and not have to work in the sun.
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