The word wig is short for Periwig and first appeared in the English language around 1675.
Wigs have been worn throughout history and not just as a fashion item. Looking through history we can see that wigs were worn to demonstrate wealth and importance as well as having a more practical purpose as protection against cold and rain. Wigs were even worn in wars to impress the enemy!
The ancient Egyptians, wore them to shield their hairless heads from the sun and for ceremonial occasions.
In the 16th century a wig would have been worn as a means of compensating for hair loss or improving one's personal appearance. They also served a practical purpose: the unhygienic conditions of the time meant that hair attracted head lice, a problem that could be much reduced if natural hair were shaved and replaced with a more easily de-loused artificial hairpiece.
Queen Elizabeth I of England famously wore a red wig, tightly and elaborately curled in a "Roman" style and King Louis XIII of France pioneered wig-wearing among men from the 1620s onwards.
Periwigs for men were introduced into the English-speaking world when Charles II was restored to the throne in 1660. The wigs worn at this time were shoulder-length or longer, imitating the long hair that had become fashionable among men since the 1620s. Their use soon became popular in the English court.
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With wigs becoming virtually obligatory garb for men of virtually any significant social rank, wigmakers gained considerable prestige. A wigmakers' guild was established in France in 1665, a development soon copied elsewhere in Europe. Their job was a skilled one as 17th century wigs were extraordinarily elaborate, covering the back and shoulders and flowing down the chest; they were extremely heavy and often uncomfortable to wear. Such wigs were expensive to produce. The best examples were made from natural human hair. The hair of horses and goats was often used as a cheaper alternative.
In the 18th century, wigs were powdered in order to give them their distinctive white or off-white color. Wig powder was occasionally colored violet, blue, pink or yellow.
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By the 1780s, young men were setting a fashion trend by lightly powdering their natural hair. After 1790, both wigs and powder were reserved for older more conservative men, and were in use by ladies being presented at court. In 1795, the English government levied a tax of hair powder of one guinea per year. This tax effectively caused the demise of both the fashion for wigs and powder by 1800.
At the beginning of the 20th Century more freely arranged hairpieces were being used. In the 1920’s short hair cuts became fashionable and the trend for wigs almost disappeared overnight until the 1960’s when the hairpiece as a fashion item became a must and were not being sold in just specialised shops but also in department stores. The strong demand for wigs led to mass manufacture and the development and production of synthetic hair.
Now in the 21st Century there is still a need for wigs and hairpieces for reasons such as; hair loss due to a medical reason; fashion, with a growing trend for hair extensions; parties, and religious requirements.
Wig Scratchers:
A small ivory hand on the end of a long slender stick, this was used to relieve the irritation caused by the numerous fleas infesting the elaborate wigs worn by fashionable 18th century women. The wigs were built up over wire foundations and padded out with false hair to reach fantastic heights, vermin were attracted by the powder and pomatum used and caused tremendous itching reachable only by the wig scratcher.
Wigs were born by both men and women in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, and were as much a part of a fashionable male's dress as his breeches. Wigs became progressively smaller throughout the century, but they retained nevertheless the awkward feature of being, for all practical purposes, fied to the wearer's head unless he happened to find himself alone, no gentlemen could be seen wigless.
The wig scratcher was therefore a boon to every man and woman who wore a wig. The short, straight little fingers of the little ivory hand could be pushed up by the ebony or ivory handle up between wig and temple. Wig scratchers were invariably made with straight fingers, to get in between the wig and the head, can be distinguished by the similar designed back scratcher.
Powdering carrots:
The maintenance of a gentleman's or lady's wig in the eighteenth century was a complicated and time consuming process. The curls had to be kept tight and neat by using a crimper and pomades. Many men and women drenched their wigs in perfume, then powdered it, either by themselves,servant or a professional dresser. The device used for powdering was called a powdering carrot, it was tube shaped but not unlike that of a carrot.
The powder was poured into the hollow wooden "carrot", and the dresser would blow into the mouthpiece at the broad end, the powder would emerge in a fine cloud from the point. Some powdering carrots were fitted with tiny bellows to produce a stream of air. The carrot was designed up of wooden rings, jointed so that the whole affair is flexible.
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In order to allow the nozzle to bend, the three smallest wooden rings were mounted on to leather. Originally there was probably a bulb of soft leather attached to the top of the cone which would have been squeezed to blow the powder out of the nozzle.
This enabled the top of the wig to be powdered without the dresser having to stand on a chair.
Wigs have been worn throughout history and not just as a fashion item. Looking through history we can see that wigs were worn to demonstrate wealth and importance as well as having a more practical purpose as protection against cold and rain. Wigs were even worn in wars to impress the enemy!
The ancient Egyptians, wore them to shield their hairless heads from the sun and for ceremonial occasions.
In the 16th century a wig would have been worn as a means of compensating for hair loss or improving one's personal appearance. They also served a practical purpose: the unhygienic conditions of the time meant that hair attracted head lice, a problem that could be much reduced if natural hair were shaved and replaced with a more easily de-loused artificial hairpiece.
Queen Elizabeth I of England famously wore a red wig, tightly and elaborately curled in a "Roman" style and King Louis XIII of France pioneered wig-wearing among men from the 1620s onwards.
Periwigs for men were introduced into the English-speaking world when Charles II was restored to the throne in 1660. The wigs worn at this time were shoulder-length or longer, imitating the long hair that had become fashionable among men since the 1620s. Their use soon became popular in the English court.
With wigs becoming virtually obligatory garb for men of virtually any significant social rank, wigmakers gained considerable prestige. A wigmakers' guild was established in France in 1665, a development soon copied elsewhere in Europe. Their job was a skilled one as 17th century wigs were extraordinarily elaborate, covering the back and shoulders and flowing down the chest; they were extremely heavy and often uncomfortable to wear. Such wigs were expensive to produce. The best examples were made from natural human hair. The hair of horses and goats was often used as a cheaper alternative.
In the 18th century, wigs were powdered in order to give them their distinctive white or off-white color. Wig powder was occasionally colored violet, blue, pink or yellow.
By the 1780s, young men were setting a fashion trend by lightly powdering their natural hair. After 1790, both wigs and powder were reserved for older more conservative men, and were in use by ladies being presented at court. In 1795, the English government levied a tax of hair powder of one guinea per year. This tax effectively caused the demise of both the fashion for wigs and powder by 1800.
At the beginning of the 20th Century more freely arranged hairpieces were being used. In the 1920’s short hair cuts became fashionable and the trend for wigs almost disappeared overnight until the 1960’s when the hairpiece as a fashion item became a must and were not being sold in just specialised shops but also in department stores. The strong demand for wigs led to mass manufacture and the development and production of synthetic hair.
Now in the 21st Century there is still a need for wigs and hairpieces for reasons such as; hair loss due to a medical reason; fashion, with a growing trend for hair extensions; parties, and religious requirements.
Wig Scratchers:
A small ivory hand on the end of a long slender stick, this was used to relieve the irritation caused by the numerous fleas infesting the elaborate wigs worn by fashionable 18th century women. The wigs were built up over wire foundations and padded out with false hair to reach fantastic heights, vermin were attracted by the powder and pomatum used and caused tremendous itching reachable only by the wig scratcher.
Wigs were born by both men and women in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, and were as much a part of a fashionable male's dress as his breeches. Wigs became progressively smaller throughout the century, but they retained nevertheless the awkward feature of being, for all practical purposes, fied to the wearer's head unless he happened to find himself alone, no gentlemen could be seen wigless.
The wig scratcher was therefore a boon to every man and woman who wore a wig. The short, straight little fingers of the little ivory hand could be pushed up by the ebony or ivory handle up between wig and temple. Wig scratchers were invariably made with straight fingers, to get in between the wig and the head, can be distinguished by the similar designed back scratcher.
Powdering carrots:
The maintenance of a gentleman's or lady's wig in the eighteenth century was a complicated and time consuming process. The curls had to be kept tight and neat by using a crimper and pomades. Many men and women drenched their wigs in perfume, then powdered it, either by themselves,servant or a professional dresser. The device used for powdering was called a powdering carrot, it was tube shaped but not unlike that of a carrot.
The powder was poured into the hollow wooden "carrot", and the dresser would blow into the mouthpiece at the broad end, the powder would emerge in a fine cloud from the point. Some powdering carrots were fitted with tiny bellows to produce a stream of air. The carrot was designed up of wooden rings, jointed so that the whole affair is flexible.
In order to allow the nozzle to bend, the three smallest wooden rings were mounted on to leather. Originally there was probably a bulb of soft leather attached to the top of the cone which would have been squeezed to blow the powder out of the nozzle.
This enabled the top of the wig to be powdered without the dresser having to stand on a chair.