Thread: William Greaves and Sons Chinese Razor

I posted a pic of this razor in the Auction section awhile back. This question is for the historically minded. I am curious to know everything possible about this razor. First the approximate date of manufacture and then the meaning of the Chinese characters on the shank. I know from the site that the marque William Greaves and Sons was used from 1817 to 1823. But it seems to be complicated by B.J. Eyre continuing to use the name.
Thanks

Here is one of mine, a Wade and Butcher. Consensus is that it is gibberish. All you need to know on Greaves! Straight Razor Place - A brief history of William Greaves & Sons. A closer pic of the tang would have someone tell if it actually says anything or not.
Not me, though!

Excellent! I'd never seen one of the fake Chinese razors made by Greaves!

I'd put the manufacture date to roughly 1837-1845.

(And thanks for linking back to my Greaves piece, Tom! I noticed a typo in there that'd gotten through several rounds of revision!)

Originally Posted by Voidmonster

Excellent! I'd never seen one of the fake Chinese razors made by Greaves!

I'd put the manufacture date to roughly 1837-1845.

(And thanks for linking back to my Greaves piece, Tom! I noticed a typo in there that'd gotten through several rounds of revision!)

A well-written, comprehensive article, Zak! This must have been en vogue during a particular time period. Do you know of other makers who did this?

The Kanji (Chinese characters) on the blade means "This razor is the property of JimmyHAD. Please return if found."

Nice one.

Originally Posted by sharptonn

A well-written, comprehensive article, Zak! This must have been en vogue during a particular time period. Do you know of other makers who did this?

+1 on Zak's article being first rate.

Check out this post here to see my W&B 'Chinee'

Originally Posted by sharptonn

A well-written, comprehensive article, Zak! This must have been en vogue during a particular time period. Do you know of other makers who did this?

I've got a G. Crookes and I've seen Joseph Rodgers, a Wostenholm or two, and I think also a Joseph Elliot. I'd be pretty surprised if there were any of the 'name brands' who didn't have fake Chinese razors.

A quick dip in the glories of the Google NGram viewer suggests the major spike in the British literature occurred around 1842, it trundled along for a bit, then fell off a cliff around 1850. That, most likely, is down to the Opium wars, which started in 1839. An absolutely great thing to read about if you're feeling a huge overabundance of human warmth and compassion.

"This "Chinese Razor" was probably made for Chinese-American immigrant market during the 1850s. The symbols on the blade are not part of the Chinese language".
Standart Guide to Razors.
Several Sheffield companies, at that time, made razors with Chinese (or similar) symbols.
Wade & Butcher.


Joseph Rodgers & Sons.

It truly is one beautiful razor. A wonderful acquisition you have there bro. Enjoy it.

I did a bit of digging around.

From the Portsmouth Journal of Literature and Politics, June 26, 1841, there's this little 'narrative ad':





From the Baton Rouge Weekly Advocate, March 29th, 1848




From the Halloween edition of the Boston Herald, 1849:



(It's a bit hard to read, but that's for Wostenholm's version)

And finally, from December 17th, 1856's Daily Union (Washington, DC):



Beyond that, the ads dry up pretty quick, with one or two generic mentions as late as 1871, but it's not clear if those are talking about Sheffield-produced razors that're branded 'Chinese' or actual razors from China (which I don't think is particularly likely).

I'd bet that 1841 date more or less marks the beginning of the fad.