Makeshift Razors

Flaked glass bottle, Antigua, early 20th century

Piece of obsidian, Ubir people, Papua New Guinea

Left: Donated by James Arthur Harley in 1908; 1908.2.2
Right: Purchased from W. H. Chignell in 1908; 1908.70.107The Ubir people of Collingwood Bay on the coast of Oro province in southeastern Papua New Guinea used this piece of obsidian as a razor one hundred years ago.

Obsidian is an igneous silicate or glass. When knapped finely using a bone or antler pressure-flaker, its crystalline structure produces an edge that is just as sharp as metal. For this reason it has been used for tools and weapons for thousands of years. The Ancient Greeks were still using obsidian razors well in to the first millennium BC when iron and bronze were readily available. The shards were clamped between bone or wooden frames and the skin lubricated with olive oil. The Mayans of Mesoamerica also used obsidian for razors, dart heads, lancets and sharpened club weapons known as maquahuitl.

In a similar way, a pebble was used to strike flakes from this manufactured green glass bottle in Antigua, although the resulting razor blades would not be quite as sharp.