Roots
Consider, if you will, the humble comb. For those of us with textured hair, this instrument is not merely a tool for taming curls or coils. It holds stories, a whisper of generations, and an imprint of survival.
When we run a comb through our hair, we connect with a legacy that stretches back through the deepest currents of time, to ancestral lands where hair was a living archive of community, status, and spirit. The very materials from which these combs were shaped speak volumes, each grain and contour carrying the echoes of heritage, chronicling journeys from ancient rituals to acts of quiet defiance.
Ancient Artefacts, Sacred Connections
The earliest combs, born from the cradle of African civilizations, were far from simple implements. They were often carved from indigenous wood, animal bone, or the opulent ivory of elephants and hippopotami, reflecting the resources and artistry of the land. In Kemet , modern-day Egypt, and the ancient Kingdom of Kush , archaeological finds reveal combs dating back over 5,500 to 7,000 years. These were not just for grooming; they were personal possessions, found buried alongside their owners, signifying their importance in both life and the afterlife.
An ivory hair comb unearthed from a grave at the cemetery of Abydos in Egypt, dating back around 6,000 years, stands as a silent witness to this profound connection. Its presence in funerary contexts underscores the sacred regard for hair and its tools in ancient African societies.
The craftsmanship evident in these ancient combs often reflected societal values and individual standing. Intricate carvings of animals ❉ birds, bulls’ horns, gazelles, hippopotami ❉ adorned handles, suggesting a connection to religious beliefs, power, or nature. Such symbolic artistry speaks to a worldview where the physical and spiritual realms intertwined, where a comb could serve as both a practical implement and a visual prayer.
These combs were also symbols of status , indicating wealth, social standing, or tribal identity. The material itself, whether rare ivory or finely worked wood, communicated a person’s place within their community.
Combs crafted from organic materials in ancient Africa were more than styling tools; they were sacred artifacts embodying cultural values, social standing, and a deep spiritual connection to hair.
The inherent qualities of these natural materials aligned with the needs of textured hair. Wooden combs, for instance, offered a gentler glide through dense curls, reducing snagging and static. Bone, with its smooth, strong surface, could also be finely shaped for efficient detangling and styling.
This harmony between material properties and hair characteristics suggests an intuitive understanding of textured hair’s unique biology that predates modern scientific classification. Ancestral artisans selected materials not just for durability or aesthetic appeal, but for their sympathetic interaction with the natural curl patterns.
What Do Ancient Comb Carvings Tell Us about Heritage?
The designs etched into these historical combs unveil rich narratives about ancestral life. Beyond mere decoration, these carvings served as a form of visual language, conveying messages about tribal affiliation, fertility, protection, and even societal roles. A study of Predynastic Egyptian combs, for example, shows recurring motifs of elephants treading on snakes, suggesting a deep mythological connection to creation. This iconography highlights how everyday items were imbued with cosmological significance, affirming a holistic view of life where tools held spiritual resonance.
The continuity of certain designs across vast stretches of time and geography within Africa speaks to enduring cultural practices. For instance, combs excavated from Dawu, Ghana, dating to the mid-seventeenth and eighteenth centuries CE, bear striking resemblance to those from Kemet, approximately 6,000 years older. This parallel, while not definitively proving direct lineal connection, certainly invites contemplation on the shared ancestral practices and possible transmissions of ideas across African civilizations. The presence of similar incised circular decoration on the teeth of both Dawu and Ancient Egyptian combs further reinforces this idea of a persistent heritage of design and function.
Ritual
The passage of time brought immense upheaval, a profound disruption that sought to sever the very strands of cultural memory. The transatlantic slave trade marked a devastating period when the heritage of textured hair and its tools faced systematic assault. Yet, within this era of forced assimilation and dehumanization, combs and hair practices transformed into quiet, powerful acts of resistance , becoming vital keepers of identity and ancestral wisdom.
Chains and the Scissors
One of the first acts of dehumanization inflicted upon enslaved Africans was the forced shaving of their heads upon arrival in the Americas. This was a deliberate, calculated move to strip individuals of their cultural identity, social status, and connection to their spiritual lineage. Hair, so significant in pre-colonial African societies as a marker of age, marital status, tribal affiliation, and spiritual connection, was systematically erased. The absence of traditional combs and hair care rituals left a profound void, yet the spirit of heritage persisted, adapting to the harsh realities of forced labor and oppression.
Despite brutal attempts to erase Black hair heritage through forced shaving, ancestral knowledge of care and styling persisted, transforming combs and hairstyles into symbols of resilient identity.
Survival necessitated ingenuity. With access to traditional materials like fine woods or ivory denied, enslaved Africans resourcefuly crafted combs from whatever was available: discarded wood scraps, animal bones, or even metal pieces. These makeshift tools, though often crude, carried immense symbolic weight. They represented a refusal to completely abandon self-care and cultural connection.
The act of tending to one’s hair, even with improvised combs, became a quiet defiance against the dehumanizing conditions. It was a tangible link to a heritage that colonizers sought to dismantle.
How Did Improvised Combs Affirm Identity?
Beyond personal grooming, hair itself, styled with rudimentary tools, became a clandestine medium of communication and resistance. Cornrows, a protective hairstyle with deep African roots, were used as a means of encoding messages, particularly for those planning escapes. It has been suggested that the patterns of braids could serve as maps of escape routes. Some historical accounts even hint at rice seeds or gold being braided into hair, a way to carry sustenance or wealth during journeys to freedom.
While the combs themselves were functional, their use facilitated these intricate hairstyles that acted as secret messages, silently defying the oppressors. This demonstrates how the simple act of styling hair, aided by the most basic of tools, became an act of self-preservation and communal solidarity, preserving cultural practices under duress.
The deliberate stigmatization of textured hair under European beauty standards further solidified the comb’s role in resistance. Natural hair was deemed “unprofessional” or “dirty,” compelling many to seek methods of straightening. While the hot comb , popularized by Madam C.J. Walker in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, provided a means to straighten hair for assimilation, it also presented a pathway to economic independence for Black women.
Yet, for many, the natural state of hair remained a political statement, a rejection of imposed norms. The enduring legacy of this period is a testament to the powerful connection between Black hair, its tools, and the unwavering spirit of those who held onto their heritage.
Relay
The spirit of resistance, honed through centuries of adversity, did not wane with the formal end of slavery. It found new expression in the twentieth century, particularly during the powerful Civil Rights and Black Power movements. In these eras, the comb, specifically the afro pick, transcended its utility, becoming a potent emblem of racial pride and defiance, its very material echoing a heritage reclaimed. The journey of the comb, from ancient ritual object to modern political symbol, charts a continuous line of cultural assertion.
From Practicality to Protest: The Afro Pick’s Ascension?
The rise of the afro pick, with its characteristically long, widely spaced teeth, became synonymous with the ‘Black is Beautiful’ movement of the 1960s and 1970s. This period marked a profound rejection of Eurocentric beauty standards that had long dictated that straight hair was the only acceptable form. Wearing an afro, in its natural, untamed glory, was a deliberate act of cultural reclamation and a visible declaration of self-acceptance.
The afro pick became the quintessential tool for shaping and maintaining this iconic style. Its widespread availability, often in plastic and metal, allowed for its popularization, making it accessible to a broader community ready to embrace their natural texture.
The most recognizable iteration of the afro pick from this era features a clenched fist handle, a direct visual nod to the Black Power salute. This deliberate design choice transformed a grooming instrument into a wearable protest. People proudly displayed these picks in their afros at rallies, in photographs, and in everyday life, broadcasting a clear message: “I love my hair, and I love who I am.” The material, often a humble plastic, carried a weight of symbolic power, embodying a collective identity and a badge of defiance. This powerful cultural artifact stands as a testament to how an object’s material form can be imbued with profound social and political meaning.
The 1960s and 70s saw the afro pick, particularly with its clenched fist motif, emerge as a powerful symbol of Black pride and a visible act of resistance against imposed beauty norms.
How Do Comb Materials Speak of Modern Resilience?
The selection of materials for combs in contemporary times continues to chronicle this heritage. While plastic and metal became prevalent for mass production during the Black Power movement, today there is a resurgence of combs crafted from traditional and sustainable materials like wood, particularly for those who prioritize holistic and gentle hair care. This return to natural materials often connects to an ancestral wisdom that recognizes the sympathetic interaction of wood with textured hair, minimizing static and snags.
This contemporary preference also mirrors a growing consciousness about the journey of hair care products and tools, seeking those that align with an ethos of respect for both the body and the earth. The very act of choosing a wooden comb over a plastic one can be a subtle reaffirmation of heritage, a quiet nod to practices that sustained communities long before industrial manufacturing. Such choices signify a deeper connection to the material culture of textured hair.
- Wood ❉ Often favored for its gentle touch on hair, reducing static and breakage. Traditional African combs were frequently wood.
- Bone ❉ Historically used in ancient African civilizations, bone combs offered strength and smooth surfaces.
- Ivory ❉ A material of luxury in antiquity, symbolizing wealth and status in ancient Kemet.
- Plastic ❉ Became ubiquitous during the 20th century, especially with the mass production of the symbolic afro pick.
- Metal ❉ Used in some modern afro picks, particularly those with finer teeth for styling.
The natural hair movement of today, building on the foundations laid by earlier generations, continues to honor and celebrate the diverse textures of Black and mixed-race hair. The tools chosen, including combs of varied materials and designs, contribute to this ongoing narrative of self-acceptance and pride. This contemporary embrace of natural hair, often facilitated by thoughtfully chosen combs, stands as a living testament to the resilience of heritage, affirming a beauty that refuses to be confined by narrow standards. It is a collective journey, each comb stroke a reaffirmation of a deep, historical connection to self and ancestry.
Reflection
The journey through the materials of combs, from the ancient forests that yielded their wood to the laboratories that forged their modern plastics, offers a profound meditation on the enduring spirit of textured hair heritage. Each comb, whether a delicately carved ivory piece from Kemet or a bold plastic pick with a raised fist, holds within its very structure the story of a people. They chronicle not only functional needs but also a legacy of identity, a refusal to be silenced, and a beauty that adapts and asserts itself across millennia. These tools are the tangible echoes of ancestral whispers, guiding our understanding of hair as a sacred extension of self.
The ‘Soul of a Strand’ ethos, as we understand it, finds deep resonance in this material chronology. It suggests that every curl, every coil, every strand is intrinsically linked to a vast, living library of history, culture, and resilience. Combs, in their varied forms and compositions, serve as the bookmarks in this archive, each material marking a chapter in the narrative of textured hair’s journey through time and oppression.
From the spiritual significance of ancient tools to the defiant stance of the afro pick, they consistently affirm that hair care is a holistic practice, intimately connected to wellbeing, self-definition, and collective memory. The story of combs is a continuous, vibrant testament to the power of heritage, forever braiding the past into the present, shaping a future where every texture is celebrated.
References
- Ashton, Sally-Ann. “Combs from Kemet: Further Thoughts on Ancient Egyptian Hair Combs.” Fitzwilliam Museum, 2016.
- Byrd, Ayana, and Lori Tharps. “Hair Story: Untangling the Roots of Black Hair in America.” St. Martin’s Press, 2001.
- Dabiri, Emma. “Twisted: The Tangled History of Black Hair Culture.” Harper Perennial, 2020.
- Ellington, Tameka N. “Black Hair in a White World.” Kent State University Press, 2020.
- Flowers, Ebony. “Hot Comb.” Drawn and Quarterly, 2019.
- Khumalo, Ncoza P. et al. “‘Relaxers’ damage hair: Evidence from amino acid analysis.” Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, 2010.
- Roseborough, Imani E. and Amy J. McMichael. “Hair Care Practices in African-American Patients.” Seminars in Cutaneous Medicine and Surgery, 2009.
- Tshiki, Nonkoliso Andiswa. “African Hairstyles ❉ The “Dreaded” Colonial Legacy.” The Gale Review, 2021.
- Burkins, Adriana Michelle. “Strands of Power, Tools of Resistance: Black Hair as Consciousness and Medium.” Master’s Thesis, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2019.