Ep 147: 16th C Men's Shaving with Alun Withey

Shakespeare uses the word “beard” in his plays over one hundred times, and almost always as a way to indicate a man’s status, power, or authority. In Anthony and Cleopatra Caesar is referred to as “scarce bearded” as a slight against him by Cleopatra, several times the phrase “by my beard” is used in plays like Alls Well That Ends Well, as an oath, and in Henry V Gower refers to a specific style of beard being known as “the general’s cut.” Throughout the works of Shakespeare we see women swooning over men who have stylish beards, old men being cited for the grey or white color of their beards, and younger men with ambition referring to the presentation and style of their facial hair as an indication of their strength in battle as well as their position of authority. Portraits of men like Robert Devereux and Sir Walter Raleigh testify to intricate detail on a man’s face when it came to choosing, and maintaining a beard, but what exactly were the fashion norms for men’s facial hair in the 16th century? When we say they “cut them” what did they use for that purpose? Here today to help us explore how men wore their beards, the various styles that were popular, and exactly what kinds of razors a man like William Shakespeare might use to acquire a style like the general’s cut to his beard, is our guest and author of Shaving and Masculinity in 18th century Britain, Alun Withey. Get bonus content on Patreon

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