Curling Tongs - Metal, circa 1920

Search the collections

Summary:: Used at Mayday Hills Hospital, Beechworth, Victoria, Australia, circa 1920. Part of the duties of attendants at psychiatric institutions was to clean and groom patients. Curling tongs would have been used by attendants who also often cut patients' hair. This is an example of personal grooming equipment used at Victorian psychiatric hospitals
Description:: Pair of metal curling tongs. One handle has black plastic tip. Heating ends of tongs are very dark and discoloured. One part is rounded while the other is hollowed. Hair would be wrapped around rounded part after tongs had been heated.
Acquisition Information:: Donation from Mayday Hills Mental Hospital

Discipline:	History
Dimensions:	15 mm (Height), 36 mm (Width)

Tagged with:	mental health, mental health institutions, psychiatric hospitals
Themes this item is part of:	Psychiatric Services Collection, Medicine in Society Collection, Public Life & Institutions Collection
Primary Classification:	MEDICINE & HEALTH
Secondary Classification:	Mental Health - Institutional Life
Tertiary Classification:	grooming & hygiene
Place & Date Used:	Mayday Hills Mental Hospital, Beechworth, Victoria, Australia, circa 1920