Thread: Revolutionary War Razor?

I have an old razor in rough condition . It has scales unfamiliar to me. I think they were cast of maybe shellac or something similar. The shank has CUVIER and A PARIS on it. It is small. The sacles have 13 stars, AMERICA, and a likeness of George Washingtonon one side and a likeness of Benjamin Franklin with LLD written above Franklin. If anyone can help shed light on the history of this razor please help.

It looks like the scales were made from pressed horn. The razor was probably not made during the American Revolution, judging from the shape of the blade. It was probably made in the early 1800's to commemorate the Revolutionary War. Are there any markings at all on the blade?

Regards - Walt

Sorry but I have no idea about it! The tang does look like it would be very old, and I know that Celluloid was in use many years later. The only very old scales that I've seen were made from common materials such as bone, horn, tortoise shell, wood etc. With that said, this should be a very interesting and informative post!

I thank you for posting!

I am certain they are not horn. They are a translucent amber color unlike any I have ever seen. On the tang is CUVIER. Underneath is A PARIS.

Nice artifact,sadly, do not think it can be resurected.JMO

"I have an old razor in rough condition . It has scales unfamiliar to me. I think they were cast of maybe shellac or something similar. The shank has CUVIER and A PARIS on it. It is small. The sacles have 13 stars, AMERICA, and a likeness of George Washingtonon one side and a likeness of Benjamin Franklin with LLD written above Franklin. If anyone can help shed light on the history of this razor please help."

I thinkmthat is George from Seinfeld...

Very interesting razor, Like Walt mentioned in his post, your razor was probably made around 1810 -1825.
Mr Cuvier, a cutler ( coutelier) from Paris name shows up in the commerce directory around those years.

I believe you will find that they are horn. If you look at your fourth photo the saw marks are clearly visible on the reverse side. Also, if you will Google "razor pressed horn" and select "images" you will see quite a few very similar scales. These scales were made be softening the horn and clamping it in a steel die to emboss the design into the horn.

Originally Posted by 25609289

I am certain they are not horn. They are a translucent amber color unlike any I have ever seen. On the tang is CUVIER. Underneath is A PARIS.

Walt thank you for your help, but I have several pressed horn scales and these are not horn. They are very thin. Almost as thin as very thin ivory scales. The back side of the scales are perhaps worm eaten or dissolved as if heat and perhaps soap had dissolved them. I have cleaned the razor and scales and used hot water and hones to press the scales flat.When I make a little more progress I will repost. Thanks for your interest.

Originally Posted by 25609289

Walt thank you for your help, but I have several pressed horn scales and these are not horn. They are very thin. Almost as thin as very thin ivory scales. The back side of the scales are perhaps worm eaten or dissolved as if heat and perhaps soap had dissolved them. I have cleaned the razor and scales and used hot water and hones to press the scales flat.When I make a little more progress I will repost. Thanks for your interest.

They're either horn or tortoise shell.

Many of the figural scales, outside of the design, were pressed very thin. Also, French scales from the early 1800's tended toward the very thin, even in horn.

What you're seeing on the back of that one scale is almost certainly someone's attempt to repair beetle damage with glue of some sort.