The ageing neck is emerging as the feature most likely to reveal the passing years, even when cosmetic treatments have preserved a youthful-looking face. Experts say thinner skin, sun exposure and changes to the muscles beneath the neck can create a marked contrast in photographs of celebrities including Monica Bellucci, Jerry Hall and Rod Stewart.
The issue has become particularly visible on the red carpet, where strong lighting can highlight fine lines, laxity, pigmentation and crepey texture below the chin and across the décolletage.
Bellucci, 62, remains widely regarded as an emblem of mature glamour, with her dark hair, olive complexion and distinctive features retaining their appeal. But while her face has maintained much of its softness and structure, the skin on her neck shows more obvious signs of time.
She is not alone. Catherine Zeta-Jones, Elle Macpherson and Melanie Griffith are among the women whose faces can appear smoother and more carefully maintained than the neck beneath them.
Why the neck can reveal ageing
Dr Arti Sing, an advanced aesthetic practitioner, said the neck was frequently overlooked in skincare routines despite being particularly vulnerable to visible ageing.
“The neck is one of the most honest areas of the body,” she said. “It ages early and visibly, yet it is often overlooked in skincare and treatment. That’s why it so often reveals a person’s age, even when the face suggests otherwise.”
She said neck skin was thinner than facial skin, with fewer oil glands and a less robust dermis. As collagen and elastin levels decline, it can lose moisture more quickly and develop fine lines, sagging and a crepey appearance.
The platysma muscle beneath the skin can also become more prominent, creating vertical bands. Dr Sing added that many people applied sunscreen only as far as the jawline, leaving the neck and décolletage exposed to ultraviolet damage, while repeated downward glances at phones could contribute to horizontal “tech neck” lines.
Jerry Hall, 70, has also prompted attention to the contrast between a carefully styled appearance and the skin beneath the chin. Her hair and enduring glamour remain striking, but the neck can appear to show her age more plainly.
The scrutiny is not confined to women. Rod Stewart and Harrison Ford were cited as examples of men whose faces and necks show different degrees of laxity, creasing and volume loss.
Sab Khan, of Avicenna Wellbeing, said Stewart’s neck displayed “more obvious skin laxity, thinning and deeper creasing”. Dr Ross Parry, medical director of Cosmedics, offered a less pronounced interpretation, saying Stewart’s face also showed clear signs of maturity.
“Rod has visible facial lines around his eyes, forehead and cheeks, alongside folds beneath the chin and across the exposed part of his neck,” Dr Parry said. “His neck shows more folding, but his face also displays clear signs of maturity, so the contrast is less dramatic than the idea of a youthful face with an older neck might suggest.”
He gave a subjective impression of Stewart’s face and neck appearing to be in the “seventies to early eighties”. Ford’s deeper facial lines and looser neck, meanwhile, were described as proportionate to one another and part of a coherent, rugged appearance.
Experts urge a combined approach
Dr Dirk Kremer, a plastic surgeon specialising in facial rejuvenation, said people considering treatment often focused on the face while neglecting the neck.
“One of the mistakes I often see in facial rejuvenation is concentrating entirely on the face and forgetting the neck,” he said. “If you make the face look considerably younger but leave an ageing neck untreated, you can actually make the contrast between the two more noticeable.”
Dr Kremer said the lower face, jawline and neck should generally be assessed together because they continue anatomically and aesthetically. In some cases, he added, the neck could be rejuvenated without changing the face, particularly where there was early neck laxity or platysmal banding but little jowling.
For those seeking to limit visible damage, the guidance in the material includes extending factor 50 sunscreen to the neck, using a wide-brimmed hat and considering skincare containing retinoids, vitamins C and E or peptides. Neck exercises were also suggested as a way of stimulating circulation and helping keep the muscles taut.
The contrast between face and neck can be striking, but it does not necessarily mean that ageing has diminished a person’s appearance. Bellucci’s example also illustrates how natural changes can coexist with enduring beauty, even when the neck refuses to conceal the passage of time.
