Curling Tongs
PeriodCirca 1740-1780
Place MadeEngland
MediumWrought iron
Dimensions11.38 × 2.75 in. (28.9 × 7 cm)
Markings"5" incised on one side of tongs near hinge.
ClassificationsPersonal Care
Credit LineMuseum Collection, 1990
Object number1990.501
DescriptionA pair of steel and iron curling tongs, comprised of two hinged sections with a square upper shaft ending in curled large ring handles. Below the hinge, the curling iron shafts are shaped into elongated, slightly tapering curling rods.Curatorial RemarksThese simple yet attractive curling tongs were most likely produced in England, perhaps in the Birmingham area. Tongs like these were imported into the American colonies by the thousands. Throughout most of the 18th century, wigs were worn by virtually all classes and economic levels of society, particularly by men. Hairdressers provided daily shaves, as well as styling, restyling, and alterations of wigs. Tongs like these would have been heated by the fire or other heat source, then the wig (which might be human hair, horse hair, goat, or other material) would be held around the heated rods to produce the desired effect. Some men, such as Thomas Jefferson, chose to wear their natural hair. Wigs, however, were actually both decorative and practical. Advertisements including runaway ads noted that indentured servants, enslaved men, and apprentices could and did wear a wide variety of wigs. After the American Revolution, wigs generally fell out of favor, gradually seen as old fashioned and fussy.
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