Whetstone
Label Text
Gentlemen in the eighteenth century often travelled with compact razor cases that held their personal set of shaving and dressing supplies. One such case, possibly belonging to George Washington, contained this natural stone hone in a wooden frame. To sharpen the blade of a straight razor, the user lubricated the hone with oil or water and then drew each side of the blade across it repeatedly.
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Date1780-1800
Medium/TechniqueStone, wood
DimensionsOverall: 5 5/8 in. x 3/4 in. x 3/8 in. (14.3 cm x 1.91 cm x 0.97 cm)
Credit LinePurchase, 1951
Object numberW-1598/D
DescriptionRectangular piece of stone glued in a shallow wooden tray.Published ReferencesStanley V. Henkels, Auction Commission Merchant, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 14 December 1920, Catalogue 1269, (Philadelphia: Stanley V. Henkels, 1920), Lot. 133. (Offered for sale but apparently not sold)
Parke-Bernet Galleries, Inc., Incunabula-American Association Books-Sets/ Famous Classics of Science and Other First Editions-Autographs & Manuscripts/Birds-Flowers-Other Books . . . Public Auction Sale January 29 and 30 at 1:45 P.M. Catalogue 1220, (New York: Parke-Bernet Galleries, Inc., 1951), Lot 633.
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