Thread: Is This a Straight Razor or Not?

Hi. Thanks for looking. I purchased this razor on the bay. It is supposedly a Roman razor with a bronze handle and steel or iron blade. However I posted on a Roman antiquities forum a picture of it and they think it is too small to have been used as a straight razor. So they are thinking a possible medical instrument.

The blade is 2-7/8" the handle is 1-7/8". Is this too small to be a straight??

Here's another shot

I tried to tell you that over at TSD too, that Roman style of razors were a longer inward curved blade, at least that is what I have seen in the past..

This however could very well still be a "Razor" but perhaps for Bloodletting instead of shaving

"Considered one of medicine’s oldest practices, bloodletting is thought to have originated in ancient Egypt. It then spread to Greece, where physicians such as Erasistratus, who lived in the third century B.C., believed that all illnesses stemmed from an overabundance of blood, or plethora. (Erasistratus also thought arteries transported air rather than blood, so at least some of his patients’ blood vessels were spared his eager blade.) In the second century A.D., the influential Galen of Pergamum expanded on Hippocrates’ earlier theory that good health required a perfect balance of the four “humors”—blood, phlegm, yellow bile and black bile. His writings and teachings made bloodletting a common technique throughout the Roman empire. Before long it flourished in India and the Arab world as well."

This is a picture of a confirmed roman razor. Not to dissimilar to the one I have.

Did he come down on the price a decent amount?

Yes. I think I got a fair price. Just hoping it is a shaving razor like the seller said it was. I am not a doctor so medical instruments hold less appeal for me. I think the blade length is consistent with a straight (more or less 3") and the handle - two full fingers a thumb and a third finger on the tip of the handle. I just am not a straight user so I don't know if the handle is big enough.

Since straights evolved from a Bronze Age fan-like shape, it seems like that would be a natural progression. You should find a Roman era expert and get an appraisal.

Originally Posted by eod7

Since straights evolved from a Bronze Age fan-like shape, it seems like that would be a natural progression. You should find a Roman era expert and get an appraisal.

I have found one and they will evaluate it for it's authenticity and appraise it. I also have a conservator that is ready to evaluate its condition and restore it if necessary.

Here is some more info and pics but I am sure you have already found them


Roman History Made Easy: A close shave

http://www.romansinsussex.co.uk/leve...sp?page_id=196

http://www.mariamilani.com/ancient_r...cient_rome.htm

I guess what I want to know is if you had a sharp version of the device first pictured above, could you shave your beard with it? Or is that totally ridiculous? That is, what is the probability the device is a shaving razor based on it's dimensions alone?