Name/Title
Bleeding/barber bowlsDescription
mid 19th century barber/bleeding bowls.
(left): ceramic bleeding or barber’s bowl.
(middle): eighteenth century pewter bleeding bowl with measured rings - a common porringer if no rings are seen.
(right): brass bleeding bowl with several levels.
Included is a daguerreotype of a patient being bled (ca. 1859). Vestiges of early bleeding by barber/surgeons can be seen today in barbershops since the barber pole is a symbol of early phlebotomy. Patients in early England would squeeze a pole to improve the flow of blood while they were being phlebotomized. The poles were subsequently stained red with blood, and when not in use, they were hung outside the door of barber-surgeons with the blood-stained white linen tourniquet wrapped around. This was the genesis of the red and white pole characteristically hung outside barbershops today.Condition
Overall Condition
Very GoodDate Examined
Jul 9, 2026Create Date
July 9, 2026Update Date
September 5, 2026
