The History of Scissors
Despite common belief, the great scientist and inventor, Leonardo Da Vinci, did not invent scissors. The Mesopotamians did. The oldest forms of scissors date back to nearly 4,000 years ago, and were found in the Middle East. These scissors consisted of the traditional two blades, but rather than two pieces of bladed metal on a pivot, the back end of the tool had a thin piece of softer metal which connected the two blades - and the user squeezed them together to use them.
Around the year 1500 BC, Ancient Egyptian scissors, very similar to older Mesopotamian versions, were also discovered. The Egyptian scissors were almost identical to modern shears - in that they were large and heavy duty, clearly for outdoor use and not cutting hair. It’s believed that if Ancient Egyptians did cut their hair, they’d use a single blade or knife.
Ancient Romans are believed to be among the first civilizations to enhance the barbaric form of scissors from Mesopotamia to the scissors we use today. Scissors have been found from the Roman period around the year AD 100 with a pivot. Unlike many other ancient civilizations, the Romans, with their updated scissors, were the first to use them for hairstyling, rather than for everyday jobs such as cutting rope and farming.
Civilizations from the East, specifically in Japan and China, may have also introduced the central point on which the two blades pivoted. This design was never majorly changed, and it became popular during the Renaissance. Scissors began to be mass produced throughout the western hemisphere in the 1700s, starting with Robert Hinchcliffe in England 1761.
Nowadays, I’m sure at least one pair of scissors can be found in every home across the country (which is useful because pretty soon we will all need to learn how to cut our own hair).
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