I am told that the modern stainless steel straight was not first available until the mid 1950s. When did the straight razor take its present form? What would George Washington's straight razor look like if I saw it? How did Martin Luther shave (straight? coal?) If Joan of Arc saw some of the men in her army shave, what would she have seen? How far back in history do I have to go before the straight razor is yet to be invented?