Comb

Status

Not on view

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 dressing comb. The two sides of the comb, one with teeth set closer together than the other, allowed the user to both clean and arrange the hair.

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Date1780-1800

Geography Possibly made - EnglandPossibly made - France

Medium/TechniqueHorn

DimensionsOverall: 5 1/4 in. x 1 in. x 3/16 in. (13.34 cm x 2.54 cm x 0.48 cm)

Credit LinePurchase, 1951

Object numberW-1598/G

DescriptionHorn dressing comb with flat back; half of the teeth are closely spaced and the other half of the teeth are more widely spaced.
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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