الأحد، 8 يوليو 2012

Shaving with an obsidian razor


My previous post re clean-shaven Romans prompted questions re the technology used to shave in that era.  This video (via Time Travelling) shows a primitive skills educator making his own blade by knapping some obsidian, then shaving with it.

These scanning EMs [credit: William A. Haviland] show that an obsidian blade is as sharp as, and smoother than, a modern steel scalpel.


Obsidian knives have been developed in modern times, but I suspect they could never be employed internally because of their intrinsic brittleness.

Finally, for completeness, Razorland has a gallery of primitive razors (bronze, iron, and copper) from a variety of early cultures.

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