Barbers have occupied a much more important place throughout history than you might think. In fact, it would not be an exaggeration to say that people’s lives depend on barbers.
Barber poles are also representative of everything they do. When you read the article, you will say that it is good that it remained only as a representative.
Let’s look at the history of barbers before we start the main topic.
It is known that the history of the Berbers dates back to Ancient Egypt, Greek and Roman civilizations.
The word “barber” comes from the Latin word “barba” meaning beard.
Gossip center, barber or surgeon?
In Rome, barbers were also known as the daily news center of the city, apart from cutting hair. You could learn all the gossip in town at the barbers. It’s not much different today. 🙂
We already know this business of barbers. However, they had another job that we did not know about: Surgery.
Barbers also provided surgical services to the lower strata that could not go to real surgeons; Apart from this, barbers took care of tooth pulling, bloodletting, leech and some wound works, which surgeons despised at that time.
How did some of the surgeons’ jobs end up with barbers?
When we think of barbers, the first thing that comes to mind is their ability to use the cutting tools they use when cutting hair and beard.
Thanks to their ability to use these cutting tools, they suddenly found themselves as barber-surgeons.
The solution to all diseases: bloodletting
At that time, shedding blood was seen as a method to cure all diseases, from sore throat to plague, and was often used.
Barbers also did the bloodletting, and they poured the blood into rice bowls. You will understand the importance of these bowls later in the article.
A path from being an assistant monk to their own organizations…
Until 1163, monks performed the bloodletting, and barbers helped the monks from time to time with their sharp tools. After this year, Pope III. Alexander forbade the clergy from doing this, and the bloodletting was entirely up to the barbers.
From that day on, barbers literally became barber-surgeons and began to heal people. They even established their first organization in France in 1904.
Enough talking about barbers, now let’s come to the barber pole, which is our main topic.
The shapes of the barber poles are always the same. However, the colors may differ. Sometimes only red-white interior, sometimes red, white and blue.
It would not be wrong to separate the color difference as “Europe and America”. Barber poles in blue, white and red are more common in America, while only red and white barber poles are common in Europe.
The Americans even adapted their barber poles!
Blue, white and red colors are also used as a sign of patriotism, as they evoke the American flag.
When we think like this, the question of why there is an extra color in the barber poles in America is answered.
Each of these colors, even the shape of the pole, has a meaning. In other words, even the color blue was not put in a random way.
What about the meanings of the colors?
White is a chosen color to represent the bandage used to stop bleeding.
Red, as can be easily guessed, is a color chosen to represent blood.
Although it is said that blue was chosen to represent the veins, as we mentioned before, it is a salute to the flag of the nation due to its reference to the American flag when combined with other colors.
Not only the colors but also the shape means a lot!
The pole itself represents the stick that the patient squeezes so that the veins can be more easily seen and the blood flows more.
The pieces below and above the pole represent the rice bowls in which the blood was shed.
In those days, barber poles were hung on doors to indicate that barbers were doing some surgical work. The barbers were a vital place for most people.
Today, barbers continue to use this pole, even though they do not perform any of the procedures that require surgery.
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