Six two pronged hair combs or hair pins in celluloid faux shell

CONDITION: good vintage condition with acceptable wear

SIZE: 5½ ins h x 1½ ins w (14 x 4 cm)

MATERIALS: celluloid (tested)

DESCRIPTION:

Here is a nice quality collection of faux shell combs for practical use in dressing the hair. They date from the late 19th to early 20th century and are all similar in design. They each have two prongs and a curved heading. They are nicely marked and trying their best to look like the real thing but test as celluloid. These items are quite flexible and bend easily in a manner which genuine shell cannot do.

These would suit a re-enactor who wished to recreate the styles of the late 19th or early 20th century.
They would also make an attractive display mounted together in a frame or in a vitrine.

FURTHER INFORMATION:

Simple two pronged combs such as these were made in pairs, or sometimes set with a larger matching comb. They were worn throughout the 19th and early 20th century. They could perform both an ornamental and a useful function, being used to hold the elaborate coiffures of the day in place as well as to adorn the hair.

Hair pins like this are characteristically made in one solid piece of the material, which might be shell, metal or some synthetic like celluloid. They usually have only one or two tines and their top or heading in a simple shape such as a horseshoe or rectangle, sometimes with the addition of rhinestones or a little openwork