As of: March 6, 2024, 1:31 p.m
By: Victoria Krumbeck
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Barbershops are hairdressing salons that not only take care of your hair but also take care of your beard.
But what's the deal with the red-white-blue post?
Munich – Barbershops can now be found everywhere.
The hair salon, specializing in men, is a real experience for some.
But have you ever noticed the red, white and blue striped post in front of the salon?
The post is called a “barberpole” or in German, barber’s post.
But why do these posts exist and what are they all about?
Its origin is a bloody affair.
Hairdressing salons: What does the striped post mean at the barber?
The history of barber's posts goes back far into the Middle Ages.
Back then, people went to the hairdresser not only for a fresh haircut, but also for medical procedures.
Bloodletting in particular could be carried out by many hairdressers.
This was a common method in which the vein was cut open to drain blood.
Bloodletting was a common treatment to cure illnesses from sore throats to the plague.
The procedure was usually carried out by monks.
Barbers assisted them because they knew how to use sharp tools.
Barber pole in front of a hair salon.
© Ralph Peters/IMAGO
In 1163, Pope Alexander III banned
the clergy to carry out the procedure.
The practice became too low-threshold for the clergy as they were needed for other more complex tasks.
Therefore, the hairdressers and barbers took over the bloodletting.
Some barbers even became dentists and pulled their customers' teeth.
In the 19th century, bloodletting fell out of favor among physicians.
Nowadays, doctors only use this practice in very rare cases.
The barber's post: sign of bloodletting - blood and bandages cover the post
The barber's post is a sign of bloodletting.
The red represents the blood, the white represents the bandages that stop the bleeding.
The post is a rod that the patients had to grip tightly to make the veins more prominent.
Some others suspect that the bandages were hung around the post.
The wind caused them to wrap around the pole.
This is how the barber post we know today came into being.
Barber posts come from the Middle Ages.
© Ralph Peters/IMAGO
Traditional barber poles in Europe are only red and white.
In the USA these are often red, white and blue.
Two theories explain the difference.
One says that the blue symbolizes the veins.
These had to be cut open to let the blood out.
The other theory interprets the blue of the post as a reference to the American flag.
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Barber pole: “Barber pole illusion” one of the most famous movement illusions
Next time you walk by a barbershop and see the post, you might want to take a closer look.
Because when the post rotates, it is a so-called “barber pole illusion”.
This is a very well known motion illusion.
As the barber pole rotates, it feels like the stripes are disappearing up or down.
For many people, a visit to the hairdresser is a luxury and not everyone can afford a haircut.
But a hairdresser from Munich offers pensioners a free service.
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(vk)