Barbary

I was riding through the Knightsville neighborhood of Cranston the other day, which naturally got me to thinking about the history of the barber's pole. The history of the barbering profession, which you can find much better explained elsewhere, is fascinating. In a nutshell, barbers were originally tribal healers; evil spirits were thought to enter the body through the hair, and so the practice of cutting the hair was venerated along with its practitioner. Later, neatly-trimmed beards were crucial to success in Athenian society. Fashion trends came and went. In the early centuries of Christianity, the clergy began enlisting barbers to assist in curative bloodletting. In 1163, Pope Alexander decreed that the clergy may no longer practice medicine, thus opening the door for the barbers of the community to assume the central role in caring for the ill. These barber-surgeons not only cut hair, but also bled patients and (bizarrely) practiced dentistry. This seemed to work out great for a few hundred years, until it became apparent that maybe these guys were spreading themselves a little thin. In the mid-1400's there started to be separate schools of surgery, though barbers remained in a position of medical authority until pretty recently.

To the pole. As you've probably guessed, the red-and-white (and sometimes blue) stripes have something to do with blood. The white stripe represents the bandage used to wrap the arm or leg (or whatever) first, and then to dress the wound after the bleeding (that's the red part). So, the next time you pass by a barber's shop, take a second look at that pole. And, if your thoughts turn to the macabre, you're welcome.