was regularly drained by a barber surgeon in the final months of the composer’s life. Beethoven: life mask (c.1812). The mask was taken by sculptor Franz Klein after being commissioned by the ...

L udwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) was a prodigious composer, credited with 722 works that pushed the boundaries of music and ushered in the Romantic era. Yet, his personal life was marred by ...