Friday, July 26, 2013

Things That Make You Go Hmmm -- The Barber Pole

Okay, I learned something very interesting the other day.  "What might that be?" you ask.  Well, I've been reading this book entitled "The Inheritor's Powder:  A Tale of Arsenic, Murder and the New Forensic Science", and although I'm only 50 pages into it, I'm already finding out some interesting tidbits, so I wanted to share some information that surprised me.  Anyway, you know how a barber pole is red and white (sometimes red, white and blue too), well do you know what those red and white colors stand for?  Ready?  Blood and bandages.  "What?" you say.  Well, it's not from getting a nick from a shave.  You see, a long, long time ago, back in the 15th century, apparently surgeons and barbers had a fabulous idea to come together and form a company.  With this new pairing, they did everything from give you a haircut to minor surgical procedures such as bloodletting.  (Bloodletting by the way, is when they drained your blood to rid you of disease.)  I know, hard to believe.  Can you imagine -- "Uh, yes, I'd like to schedule a surgical procedure next week and while you're at it, can you give me a trim?"  Aah!  And we think people now days are crazy?  Just look at some of our ancestors.  Fortunately at some point in time, this coupling of professions split and went their separate ways.  Whew.

Now, I wonder what little treasures I'll find out next. . . .

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