The Merriam-Webster dictionary lists the etymology of "defaced" as "Middle English, from Anglo-French desfacer, deffacer, from des- de- + face front, face". Th

The Merriam-Webster dictionary lists the etymology of "defaced" as "Middle English, from Anglo-French desfacer, deffacer, from des- de- + face front, face". This doesn't really explain why the middl english and anglo-french words focused on the face. I wonder if down through history, the habit of destroying statue's faces (or Egyptian noses) led to this word.