Thread: Pre 1800 Razor

I came across this razor and the wooden box that it came in a few years ago at an estate sale in up state New Jersey. From what I have found out it will date pre 1800s because of the blade edge and shank running in a straight line along with the short tail. I know a little about the cast steel stamping but the question is, what is the crown and letters R. P. representative of.
I am new to the forum and any thoughts or answers would really be appreciated.

I can't help with the markings or dating (though it does look 1700s or early 1800s to me), but I wanted to say that you have found a lovely razor there.

Any chance you could get a better closeup of the crown and RP? I'm not wholly sure it's a crown. Early cutler's marks were sometimes not as ... figural ... as all that.

That said, it might be similar to Shepherd's 'Wolf' crown.

Unfortunately, are are a lot of options for who or what R.P. might be, but first to pop into my head is someone from the Parkin clan. That doesn't seem to pan out though as there are no R. Parkinses registered as apprentices in the right field and timeframe or as cutlers in the directories.

For the age of that razor, it is in superb condition! Definitely a treasure.

... And I'd guess it to have been made between 1780-1810.

A razor similar to this has been my exclusive daily shaver for several months now. Sure is fun to shave with something this old! Nice score.

That one's a keeper! Fix up the edge & it'll last another 200 years. Excellent catch!

Lovely old blade. We refer to those as 'stub tails' because of the short monkey tail. The way the cutting edge runs into the tang dates the razor along with the absolutely straight scales. In the early 1800s , probably around 1810, according to Robert Doyle, the scales begin to curve slightly and there begins to be a transition from cutting edge to tang. Probably too many split thumb pads caused that.

So as we know, the crown signifies Regent with the initial being the name of the king or , in Victoria's case, queen. So how does the P fit in ? Well, this from the global Wiki might explain it. If it is what I think it is it stands for Prince Regent and that would date the razor to between 1800 and 1811. See the quote from the wiki below ;

From 1811 to 1820 George III suffered a severe bout of what is now believed to be porphyria, an illness rendering him incapable of ruling. His son, the future George IV, ruled in his stead as Prince Regent. During the Regency and his own reign, the power of the monarchy declined and by the time of his successor, William IV, the monarch was no longer able to effectively interfere with parliamentary power. In 1834, William dismissed the Whig Prime Minister, William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne, and appointed a Tory, Sir Robert Peel. In the ensuing elections, however, Peel lost. The King had no choice but to recall Lord Melbourne. During William IV's reign the Reform Act 1832, which reformed parliamentary representation, was passed. Together with others passed later in the century, the Act led to an expansion of the electoral franchise, and the rise of the House of Commons as the most important branch of Parliament.[61]

I do want to thank you for your most useful information. I think this may well be the answer to my question. I did a little more reading on the 'Regency Period' (RP) or the Prince Regent (Prince of Wales) and everything seems to correspond.

To the best of my knowledge, the stamps referring to the monarch didn't begin until 1822. Earlier than that and the crown was a cutler's mark (like those stamped WOLF), so in this case the RP is most likely the initials of the maker.

Originally Posted by Voidmonster

To the best of my knowledge, the stamps referring to the monarch didn't begin until 1822. Earlier than that and the crown was a cutler's mark (like those stamped WOLF), so in this case the RP is most likely the initials of the maker.

That might be the case. Otherwise it is even more odd than it would have been if it does stand for the Regent Prince. I say that because according to Robert A. Doyle's "Collecting Straight Razors" the blade and the scales on this razor look like pre 1800. No distinct tang and absolutely straight scales.

Due to the wiki article saying the 'Regent Prince' began his tenure in 1811 I thought it was late for that blade and scale design. If the regent marks didn't begin until 1822 that is not only past the time for the Regent Prince but too far removed for the style of the blade.

Here is an enlarged look at the crown and letters. Sorry it isn't any clearer, I'm waiting on my new camera for Christmas.