18th century shaving set with bowl by La Chateau

[Wm. R. Robertson]

A few years ago I was asked to sell a shaving bowl made by Jeffery Gueno & the late Frank Handley which used the name La Chateau Miniatures. It was such a wonderful bowl showing all those shaving implements I just had to make a set. From the left are a tortoise shell comb, ivory handled razor, the bowl, Ivory comb, scissors, fleam (for blood letting) and ivory hand led hand mirror. 

 

Someday I'll make another set as I now have a shaving bowl of the same type by the late Emily Good.

 

These along with my candlestick are sitting on a Paul Runyon block front chest.

 

[Debora Beijerbacht]

Hmmm, don't quite get the blood letting (on purpose) with shaving... Must be a man's thing?

 

 

Other than that; fantastic set to stage a gentlemen's bedroom with! Btw, was it common to hang the bowl up, hence the two holes for a thread?

[Elizabeth Gazmuri]

Great set, and really nice chest, is Paul Runyon still around?

[Wm. R. Robertson]

In the 18 th century blood letting was a common cure for about anything, they thought if you were sick you must have bad blood so the thing to do was to get it out of you. Both doctors and barbers were aloud to do it, I think even the red strips on a barber' pole (trade sign ) stood for blood..... I'll have to read up on these. I have some wonderful sets in my full collection of etuis, little cases made of tortoise shell, shagreen and silver for a man to carry in his pocket.

As for the holes, I can't remember if they are for hanging the plate on the wall or around your neck.

Elga, Paul Runyon is long gone, I feel he was one of the true masters of this art. You really have to touch his work to understand it, I know sounds strange but you do. I spent one day in his shop in 1978 and in that day he taught me the basics for what I have done ever since.

[Lee-Ann Chellis Wessel]

Fabulous set !  I love barber bowls and am especially attracted to this one with the "impliments" painted on. I think that the pair of holes is for hanging on the wall since I know of other types of plates and low bowls that are not barber bowls having similar pairs of holes.  Although I have thought that a long enough string through the holes could function for both purposes. Maybe the man who is receiving the shave held the bowl ?.. it seems that the barber would need both hands free to use the razor carefully.

[ElgaKoster]

Lee-Ann, I found this painting from 1769 showing a man holding the barber's bowl while he is being shaved.

http://siftingthepast.com/2012/05/04/the-barbers-shop-laroon-1769/

[SueV]

This is fascinating!

[Lee-Ann Chellis Wessel]

There are several of these early 18th c. English Delftware barber bowls in collections at Colonial Williamsburg that have painted shaving and bloodletting impliments.   They include scissors,combs, razors, balls of soap, lathering brushes, bottles of after shave?, looking glasses,and one has a razor case.Also illustrated are  knives, needles, drills, and as on this Le Chateau miniature, crossbones.

 

Most of the Williamsburg examples have a round depression in the rim to hold a soap ball.  Several have the previously discussed pair of hanging holes in the rim and others have holes behind through the footring.  Use of these holes is not limited to barber bowls however.  I have seen them on other decorative plates, plaques, and bowls as on the large Italian maiolica dish from the J Paul Getty Museum collection that I replicated in miniature.

[Moderator1]

That bowl you did is wonderful.... I hope you will post more!

On theses hanging holes? Did they tie a piece of rope or leather through them and hang them on the wall? Was it long or short? I assume pretty side of the bowl facing out? Was it for decoration or to just dry the bowl?

Thanks

[Lee-Ann Chellis Wessel]

Some sort of heavy string or perhaps a strip of leather were used to hang the bowl on the wall. Bill Sargent says in his recent book on Chinese export porcelain at Peabody Essex Museum concerning a barbber bowl in their collections "... the two holes were used for stringing the bowl in order to hang it on the wall thus implying that the owners appreciated the bowl for it's decorative value as well as it's function."

  As far as length of the string.. I think it would depend on the depth of the bowl.  A deeper bowl with holes in the rim would require longer string to hang properly from the wall with the decorative side facing out.

  Also, I did find an image of a man with shaving bowl hung with the string around his neck.  If this is an acurate portrayal of functioning barber bowl it would require quite a long string.

  This is a detail from a strange 18th c. Dutch painting by Cornelis Troost showing the bowl hung around a man's neck.

 

And... I forgot to mention in the list of impliments decorating the English Delft bowls.. nit combs, powder brushes, and dental pliers !! Sounds like scary business to go to the barber !!

[Althea]

Great thread!  Love the historical context as well as the fine replicas!  I would agree with Lee-Ann that the example Bill shows is for hanging on the wall.  Bill and Lee-Ann--your pieces are gorgeous

[Susann]

Love all the history and research that go into these marvellous creations,