Hair curling tongs/irons

Object/Artifact

-

Waterperry Museum

Name/Title

Hair curling tongs/irons

Entry/Object ID

2025.1.568

Description

Hair curlers or wavers, with wooden handles. The tongs have two prongs. The lower prong is a solid cylinder and the other is fluted so that the two fit together when the tongs were closed. The tongs were heated over a fire or a gas burner, then tested on paper to make sure they were not too hot and then applied to the hair. Note: the edges of fluted prongs are thinner on curling- than on waving irons.

Context

The art of hair styling goes back 4000 years. In the 8th century there is reference in St Adhelm, Planché "Twisted locks delicately curled by the iron of those adorning her". Until the 18th cenutry the prongs of many of the curling irons were solid and rounded. Until the middle of the 19th century 'pinching irons' were called curling tongs and small diameter curling tongs were called frizzling tongs. These tongs have no makers name.

Category

Domestic

Acquisition

Accession

2025.1

Source or Donor

Gordon Dempster

Acquisition Method

Transfer

Dimensions

Length

250 mm

Circumference

35 mm

Weight

110 g

Material

Metal, Wood

Location

* Untyped Location

CC11S3

Condition

Overall Condition

Good

Research Notes

Research Type

Researcher

Notes

Ref; An Illustrated Dictionary of Hairdressing and Wigmaking, James Stevens Cox, 1984, Batsford.