Thread: The reason I’ve been selling razors lately.

So I sold my beloved W&B FBU, the one I had intended to keep (I think you’re going to be very happy, Paul!), and I did it because I needed to pay down some of what I’d spent to get, in part, this.



The story of this thing... Well, I just filed the insurance claim with the USPS. It was supposed to be one of a pair. One of those deals where I’d gone in halvies with someone else with the plan being we’d each get one. (I leave it up to you to reveal yourself if you choose). He’ll be getting this one after I shave with it, and hopefully I’ll get the somewhat sizable chunk of cash back.

The package went to North Carolina and bounced back and forth between Chapel Hill and Raleigh for about a week.

Today, long after it was supposed to have been delivered, my mail carrier showed up and the box was crushed. One of my fears had been that I’d get a smashed box full of razor shards (apart from the pair of these there was one other, which I’ll get to later — I need to secure a few things first.)

I ran into the kitchen to open it up and inside were two razors and three sheets of bubble wrap. The shipper hadn’t taped up anything, just loosely wrapped them and stuck it in a flat rate box. When the package got smooshed, one of the razors slipped out. Who knows where it is.

If you see one exactly like this show up for sale somewhere, please PM me!

Anyway.



This represents a very late resurrection of John Barber’s brand by his grandson, John Arthur Warburton Barber. He rented the mark from his mother in the late 1860’s and hired on enough hands to make some very nice cutlery.

It’s barely visible here, but the blade etch and all the stamping had a gold wash. I should mention I’ve done no work on this other than briefly attempt to clean the stamp enough to see the gold. Of course it came out along witht he muck that was obscuring it.



The blade grind is concaved on both sides with the cavity crocus polished and the flat face etched to a uniform frosting.

All by itself I would’ve wanted this, but there’s more.







That quite long line of scrimshaw says “Mr. Will Wagner is our only Agent at Odessa, John Barber & Son”.

What’s all this?

William Wagner was a German businessman in partnership with two Italian brothers by imperial appointment as importers once things normalized after the Crimean war, in the mid 1850’s. The small British expat community thought very highly of Mr. Wagner.

The pile side stamp was gold washed too, and that escutcheon plate on the front is silver. Both scales are high-grade ivory.

And one of them is lost to the viscitudes of shipping.

Got confused reading again, Zak!

So one of a pair slipped out of a priority box? That should never happen?
I always cross-tape those. Something so unique should be found. Sad situation.


Now explain Odessa? Greece?

Originally Posted by sharptonn

Got confused reading again, Zak!

So one of a pair slipped out of a priority box? That should never happen?
I always cross-tape those. Something so unique should be found. Sad situation.

Yup. The shipper used no tape anywhere. Not on the box, not on the rolls of bubblewrap. So when the box got crushed it made a big enough gap at the corner that one razor slipped out.

I am not amused... Though I am extremely happy with the razors that were still in the box, even if one of them will leave my possession.

Though, who knows, maybe USPS will find it?

Originally Posted by sharptonn

Now explain Odessa? Greece?

Odessa is a warm-water port city in the south of the Ukraine, then part of Russia. Throughout the 19th century, it had become increasingly cosmopolitan but without a lot of British interests there. After the fallout from the Crimean war settled, things opened up more to English speakers. I'm unclear on which emperor appointed William Wagner as an official foreign business agent I think it was Nicholas I, but I can't find the reference right now.

Oh my, I'm so sorry that happened!
That's a terrible tragedy no less.
Beautiful blade and scales. Its obvious that special consideration was taken in producing this one.
I'll keep my eyes peeled.
We can only hope some idiot doesn't get a hold of it and ruin it, as happened with razor of mine that was stolen by a babysitter a year ago.
Perhaps it will show up on the Bay? Stranger things happen.

Good luck!

Originally Posted by MikeT

Oh my, I'm so sorry that happened!
That's a terrible tragedy no less.
Beautiful blade and scales. Its obvious that special consideration was taken in producing this one.
I'll keep my eyes peeled.
We can only hope some idiot doesn't get a hold of it and ruin it, as happened with razor of mine that was stolen by a babysitter a year ago.
Perhaps it will show up on the Bay? Stranger things happen.

Good luck!

Yeah. My irritation is tempered by the fact that the other two razors were still in the box. All the same, I find it physically painful when historically interesting artifacts are lost.

AH! so there were 3 and one got lost.

Could be much worse, I suppose. It should show. No one could sell it.....
Unless it goes into one of the unseen collections?

Originally Posted by sharptonn

AH! so there were 3 and one got lost.

Could be much worse, I suppose. It should show. No one could sell it.....
Unless it goes into one of the unseen collections?

Exactly.

I'll post about the third razor later. It's got the larger story attached, and I need to secure some supporting evidence.

It's also the older one. 1815.

This has developed into an intriguing tragedy, such a terrible thing, and now this third razor business...
Not too make light of it, but with the accounts of history you dig up that are always excellent reads, and here you speak of another with more history involved..
It reminds me of a curious mystery in a Sherlock Holmes story.
Very curious indeed Watson!

Originally Posted by MikeT

This has developed into an intriguing tragedy, such a terrible thing, and now this third razor business...
Not too make light of it, but with the accounts of history you dig up that are always excellent reads, and here you speak of another with more history involved..
It reminds me of a curious mystery in a Sherlock Holmes story.
Very curious indeed Watson!

Neil Miller had taken to calling me Mycroft -- Sherlock's smarter, much lazier brother.

It's a charge I find difficult to deny, mostly because of the high praise wrapped in an accurate character assessment.

Either way, Lovely to see! Reckon Neil would see it the same way.