There is evidence of barbers cutting hair long ago as 5000 years , with hair cutting/shaving equipment being found in Egyptian excavations.
The origin of the name “barber” comes from the Latin “barba”, which means “beard”.
Can you imagine what a visit to the barbers must have been like for our ancestors? Today, we just choose a hair style to suit our tastes, and the barber trims our hair accordingly, but the role of the barber in earlier times was much more complex.
It has been suggested that Barber-Surgeons originally assisted Monks tending for the sick, because Monks were forbidden from spilling blood,
In England, in the Middle Ages, the role of Barbers was formally extended to include a whole range of services, such as surgery, bloodletting (sometimes with leeches), teeth removal, enemas and removing ear wax. In 1308, these Barber-Surgeons eventually formed a powerful London-based guild, The Worshipful Company of Barbers, to regulate and maintain the status of their members.
Henry V111 founded the Royal College of Physicians in 1518. In 1540, he decided to form the Company of Barbers and Surgeons by amalgamating the Barbers Company and the Fellowship of Surgeons. In 1745, the Royal College of Surgeons was formed in recognition of the more specialised nature of surgery by this time.
The red and white pole, outside a traditional barber’s shop, was intended to draw attention to the services offered within, such as bloodletting. The original pole would have had bandages hanging from it, some new and some used, which would have wound around the pole in the wind, giving the striped appearance. Even today, the modern electrically operated pole equivalents still exist. There is a pole outside the barber’s shop, on Pillory Street in Nantwich, next to the White Horse pub. However, the pole colours are very faded, and the pole no longer rotates, as it would have done in the recent past (and no bloodletting takes place in the barber’s shop, I promise).
The most prominent Nantwich born member of the Company of Barbers and Surgeons is John Gerard, also a celebrated herbalist, born in 1545 and educated in Willaston. He moved to London, and was apprenticed to Alexander Mason (a Barber-Surgeon) in 1562, before becoming the herbalist to King James 1st.
Gerard became Master of the Company of Barbers and Surgeons in 1607, after a long and successful career. He died in 1612. There is a downloadable booklet, for sale through the museum online shop, for those who wish to know more about John Gerard:
John Gerard and his Herball or Generall Historie of Plants
Many people have been bemused by medical physicians traditionally being called “Doctor”, and surgeons being referred to as “Mr”. This came about because a physician required a medical degree to be able to practice medicine, but a surgeon traditionally only required a diploma from the Company of Barbers and Surgeons. Nowadays, thankfully, members of both professions require an education to at least medical degree level before specialising, and becoming qualified, in their chosen fields.
Probably the most eminent surgeon to live in Nantwich was Sir William Bowman, who was born in 1816 at Sweetbriar Hall, on Hospital Street. read more about Sir William Bowman here: