chertsey museum (2024)

Leonardo da Vinci once said, “Hair is essential to a face as a frame is to a picture.” Humankind’s fascination with hair dates back to the earliest of civilizations and lives on in the trends of today.

Hairstyles have evolved from a display of power and wealth to an expression of self and individuality. Hair has been used as a medium to make political statements, rebel against social norms, and to tell one’s story. Through the years hair has been braided, coloured, teased, and adorned to reflect not only the fashions of the day, but also the values of the era.

Sources of inspiration for hairstyles over the centuries have come from conquered tribes, majestic monarchs, and Hollywood idols. Hair has signified religious sanctity, and also women’s rights. Whilst hairstyles and people’s reasons for them have changed drastically throughout the centuries, the societal significance of hair has remained constant.

Roman hairstyles had modest beginningsusually with simple tresses bound with aband on top of the head. However, as theRoman Empire expanded, the grandeur of the resulting triumphal processionals gave women an outlet for more lavish hairstyles.

The desire to display wealth, power, and status led to elaborate creations to enhance the woman’s appearance. As clothing was often not a signifier of a woman’s status, the Romans turned to intricate hairstyles to flaunt their power. A 'natural' style was associated with barbarians, whom the Romans believed had neither the money nor the culture to create these styles. The more complex and unnatural the hairstyle, the more it was a reflection of the woman’s wealth. Women whocould afford the expense piled theirhair high, using wires, dyed their hair blonde,red, or black, created intricate curls, andadorned their hair withflowers, jewelsand pearls.

The Elizabethan period saw a dramatic change in culture as England transitioned from the fiercely religious Middle Ages and into a more secular society that embraced science, politics, and art. The veils of the Medieval period signifying religious modesty were cast aside for the first time in England as young married women went about with their hair uncovered.

Hairstyles of the Elizabethan era were characterized by high, frizzed hair and often placed over wires or pads to create a heart-shaped frame around the head. These hairstyles were made easier when the first metal hairpins were invented in England in 1545. The ideal hair was considered to be fair or red in colour and preferably naturally curly as inspired by the Queen herself. Women would supplement their own hair with natural hairpieces sometimes rumored to have come from horses or even children’s hair. Wigs became fashionable in the last quarter of the century, being first introduced to England around 1572.

Engraving of Abraham Cowley by W. Faithorne

Political alliances dominated mens’ appearancesin the 17th century. The Royalist “Cavalier”style was characterized by shoulder lengthhair. Ribbons and bows were often used and “lovelocks,” a small lock of hair that cascaded from the crown of the head down over the left shoulder, were treated as special features. The Parliamentarian “Roundheads” typically wore their hair cropped. When the English monarchy regained sovereignty, men kept their hair long and curly and often used “periwigs” as a substitute to their own hair. Some men, in particular soldiers and travellers, began to tie back the long hair at the nape of the neck into a pony-tail.With wigs gaining wide popularity in bothFrance and England, the first wigmaker’s guild was established in 1655.

Mrs Frederick, engraved by J.R. Smith

The Fontange of the 17th Century gradually saw a reduction in size and height as women for the first half of the 18th Century generally wore their hair small and close to the head. Hair was worn in soft curls or waves, with little to no height. Most Frenchwomen powdered their hair with white powder; Englishwomen generally left their hair unpowdered. At the back, the hair was generally arranged in small curls, a twist or braid worn pinned to the head, or pulled up smoothly.

The formality of the 17th and early 18th Centuries eventually gave way to the frivolity of the latter half of the 18th Century as hairstyles rose to great heights and adornments ranged from ribbons and jewels to flowers and stuffed animals. The “a la Fregate” made its debut in this century with a model war ship riding on rippling waves of hair. Women rarely wore whole wigs as they were intended for men. Instead, they hired professional hairdressers who added false hair to their natural locks. Women were expected to augment their own hair with false hair, padding, powder, wires, and ornaments. Because these hairstyleswere often held into place using lard, rats were attracted to the creations and made homes of the coiffure.

18th Century men wore wigs for formal events, or, for informal occasions, hair was worn long and powdered, brushed back from the forehead and tied back at the nape of the neck with a black ribbon. Introduced by Frederick William I for “the convenience of the soldiers” of his army, this “tie wig” is the style most usually associated with the 18th Century. By the 1780s, young men were setting a fashion trend by lightly powdering their natural hair. Hair powder was originally used mostly as a degreaser. White haired wigs were popular because they were expensive and rare, and so men began to use white powder to color their wigs and hair, as it was less destructive than dye.

After 1790, both wigs and powder were reserved for older more conservative men. In 1795, the English government put a tax on hair powder of one guinea per year which ended both the fashion for wigs and powder by 1800. In France the association of wigs with the aristocracy caused the fashion for both to disappear during The Terror of 1793.

Queen Victoria was a fashionicon in her own right. In the early years of herreign, she inspired the “Apollo Loop” in which a plain or coiled plait of false hair was attachedonto wires to create eye-catching loops worn verticallyon top of the head. But the use of elaborate wigs madeway for cleaner, gentler looks. The Victorian period offashion was about living more simply than the previousera. Hairstyles eventually became more natural and demure with hair parted in the middle, drawn into a bun or coil with curls allowed to fall loosely at the sides of the head.

Hairstyles mirrored the aspirations and social changes occurring within society during this era. The Industrial Revolution saw the rise of the middle classes and brought new fashions for clothes and hair. By the 1850s women wore hairstyles incorporating hairpieces purchased from the new department stores. Additionally, women began using soaps to clean their hair, but this act would strip away oils, leaving the hair stringy and dry. Products to restore hair’s lustre included vegetable oil and even bear grease.

Towards the end of the 19th century, the Marcell Wave invented by Marcel Grateau’s “curling iron,” became apopular hairstyle which enabled to create a more naturallooking wave as opposed to a curl. Victorians associatedhair with life and love, therefore, it was traditional forwomen to incorporate lockets of hair intomourning jewellery after thepassing of a loved one.

Albert Smith - original by Field Talfourd

Throughout much of the Victorian Era most menwore fairly short hair from just over the top of theears at the start of the period to a moderatelyclose cut towards the end of the 19th Century.This short hair was often accompanied by variousforms of facial hair including moustaches, side-burns,and full beards.

Victorian men used different kinds of waxes and oilsto keep their facial hair in shape, including woodframes used at night to keep their moustaches shaped.A clean-shaven face did not come back into fashionuntil the end of the 1880s and early 1890s.

The 20th Century saw much social change for women; from obtaining the right to vote in many countries to sexual liberation in the 1960s. With each passing decade, women styled their hair to reflect their increasingly liberated lifestyles. Growing affluence at all levels of society throughout the century created a constant demand for novelty. Changes in hair styling now occurred regularly throughout the decades.

Beginning with the Edwardian Era, the hairstyles at the turn of the century were characterised by a romantic, soft fullness created by back-combing and the use of hair pads called “rats.” However, the ‘Roaring Twenties’ abandoned the constraints of Victorian and Edwardian life and women caused a stir by going to barber shops to get their hair cut into a bob. The free spirited young women of the twenties shortened their hair as well as their skirts and enjoyed themselves. Hollywood became an important interest during the late thirties and forties and remained a major influence on hairstyles throughout the century as many women wished to emulate their screen idols’ style.

In the first years of the 20th Century, some men were still wearing moustaches, but usually with short hair. The 1920s style, however, was a clean shaven face and flat-combed, short hair. Oils and Pomades helped men style their hair in the 1930s and 40s.

Much like the women of the 20th Century, men also turned to popular culture for hairstyle inspiration. As Hollywood films emerged, men’s hairstyles were often influenced by leading male actors, such as James Dean, Clarke Gable, and Elvis Presley.

By the 1960s, a breakdown of formality and of many previously accepted standards caused more diversity in hairstyles than any previous decade. Women’s hairstyles ranged from the poufy Bouffant to long, sleek and straight hair. Improvements in hairstyling tools and inventions of hair styling products made possible a wide range of styles from which a woman could choose. Musicians, such as the Beatles, were highly influential in the styling of men’s hairstyles as well, inspiring such haircuts as the ‘mop’.

In the closing decade of the 20th century, the themes from the 1900s in hairstyling were ever-present. Women still looked to Hollywood for inspiration as “The Rachel,” sparked by American actress, Jennifer Aniston, was the most requested hair style of the decade. The advent of the internet in the 1990s allowed styling ideas to spread globally within minutes.