Ancient Greek and Roman sculptures were not pure white.

Summary: Did you know ancient Greek and Roman statues weren't actually plain white marble? Back in the day, they were painted in bright, eye-popping colors! Over time, the paint wore off. When Renaissance artists like Michelangelo found them, they thought the statues were supposed to be pure white and copied that look. Later, some historians even ignored the leftover paint because they wrongly believed pale statues were more beautiful. Even the Egyptian Pyramids looked different—they used to be covered in shiny white limestone!

Source: interestingfacts URL: interestingfacts.com/fact/ancient-greek-and-roman-sculptures-were-originally-painted-not-pure-white/ (opens in new tab)