Barber pole, ca. 1938. Before barbers limited themselves to cutting hair and shaving beards, they performed surgery. Since the 1700s, the spiraling red and white stripes of the barber pole have symbolized the blood and bandages that were once part of the barber's trade.

This modern sign contains a rotating cylindar driven by an electric motor. Rather then being percieved as rotating, the viewer will have the illusion of ascending or descending sripes (depending upon the direction of spin)

A barber's pole is a type of sign used by barbers, a pole with white and red stripes. ImageMetadata File history File links Download high resolution version (1536x2048, 462 KB) Summary Barber pole, ca. ... ImageMetadata File history File links Download high resolution version (1536x2048, 462 KB) Summary Barber pole, ca. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article may require cleanup. ... Look up sign in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... A boy visiting a barber A barber (from the Latin barba, beard) is someone whose occupation is to cut any type of hair, give shaves, and trim beards. ...

The origin of the barber pole is associated with the service of bloodletting. During medieval times, barbers also performed surgery on customers. The original pole had a brass basin at the top (representing the vessel in which leeches were kept) and bottom (representing the basin which received the blood). The pole itself represents the staff that the patient gripped during the procedure to encourage blood flow. Bloodletting (or blood-letting, in modern medicine referred to as phlebotomy) was a popular medical practice from antiquity up to the late 19th century, involving the withdrawal of often considerable quantities of blood from a patient in the belief that this would cure or prevent illness and disease. ... A boy visiting a barber A barber (from the Latin barba, beard) is someone whose occupation is to cut any type of hair, give shaves, and trim beards. ... A cardiothoracic surgeon performs a mitral valve replacement at the Fitzsimons Army Medical Center. ... Blood flow is the flow of blood in the cardiovascular system. ...

The red and white stripes symbolize the bandages used during the procedure: red for the blood-stained and white for the clean bandages. Originally, these bandages were hung out on the pole to dry after washing. As the bandages blew in the wind, they would twist together to form the spiral pattern similar to the stripes in the modern day barber pole. The barber pole became emblematic of the barber/surgeon's profession. Later the cloths were replaced by a painted wooden pole of red and white stripes. Theres also a song called Bandages by the American alternative rock group Hot Hot Heat which appears on the 2002 album Make Up the Breakdown. ...

After the formation of the United Barber Surgeon's Company in England, a statute required the barber to use a blue and white pole and the surgeon to use a red pole. In France, surgeons used a red pole with a basin attached to identify their offices. Blue often appears on poles in the United States, possibly as an homage to its national colors. Another, more fanciful, interpretation of these barber pole colors is that red represents arterial blood, blue is symbolic of venous blood, and white depicts the bandage. The Worshipful Company of Barbers is one of the Livery Companies of the City of London. ... Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: God Save the King/Queen Capital London Largest city London Official language(s) English (de facto) Unification    - by Athelstan AD 927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq mi  Population    - 2005 est. ... For a description of the medieval homage ceremony see commendation ceremony Homage is generally used in modern English to mean any public show of respect to someone to whom you feel indebted. ... Section of an artery An artery or arterial is also a class of highway. ... In geology, a vein is a regularly shaped and lengthy occurrence of an ore; a lode. ...

Prior to 1950 there were four manufacturers of barber poles in the United States. In 1950, William Marvy of St. Paul, Minnesota started his barber pole manufacturing business. Mr. Marvy made his 50,000th barber pole in 1967, and by the early part of 1996 over 74,000 poles had been produced. The William Marvy Company is the sole remaining manufacturer of barber poles in North America. In recent years, the sale of spinning barber poles has dropped considerably, both because very few new barber shops are opening and many jurisdictions prohibit moving signs of any kinds as unsightly or visually disrupting. 1950 (MCML) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... Manufacturing is the transformation of raw materials into finished goods for sale, or intermediate processes involving the production or finishing of semi-manufactures. ... State capitol building in Saint Paul Saint Paul is the capital and second-largest city of the state of Minnesota in the United States of America. ... 1967 (MCMLXVII) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar (the link is to a full 1967 calendar). ... 1996 (MCMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... World map showing North America A satellite composite image of North America. ...

Other uses of the term "barber(s) pole"

Aviation

The term "on the barber pole" is pilot jargon that refers to flying an aircraft at the maximum safe velocity. The Airspeed Indicator on aircraft capable of flying at altitude features a red/white striped needle resembling a barber pole. This needle displays the VMO (Maximum Operating Velocity) or - at altitude - the MMO (Mach Limit Maximum Operating Speed) of the aircraft. As the aircraft increases in altitude, and the air decreases in density and temperature, the speed of sound also decreases. Close to the speed of sound, an aircraft becomes susceptible to Mach Buffet - shockwaves produced by flying so close to the sound barrier. Thus - as the speed of sound decreases, so the maximum safe operating speed of the aircraft is reduced. The "barber pole" needle moves to indicate this speed. Flying "on the barber pole" therefore means to be flying the aircraft as fast as is safe to do so in the current conditions.[1] Airspeed Indicator The airspeed indicator is an instrument used in an aircraft to display the crafts airspeed, typically in knots, to the pilot. ... An F/A-18 Hornet approaching the sound barrier. ...

Prostitution in Korea

In South Korea, the barber's pole is often seen spinning on the sides or tops of buildings late at night, and a haircut is often not what is for sale here. The businesses claim to offer a wide variety of services including massages, skin stretching, coffee, and baths. However, it is widely known within the country that these businesses are actually selling sex under the guise of a legitimate business. Single pole places may not offer full sexual services, however, places with two or more poles definitely offer such services. Although prostitution is illegal in Korea and skillfully hidden from sight, it is actually quite rampant and an impossible problem to solve as police often turn a blind eye.

Optical Illusion

A spinning barber pole is the basis for a famous motion perception illusion, in which the stripes appear to be travelling down the length of the pole, rather than around it. Apple uses this illusion on its computers to graphically represent the progress of a download or other function. Please wikify (format) this article or section as suggested in the Guide to layout and the Manual of Style. ... Apple Computer, Inc. ... This article is about the computer terms. ...

Music (Acoustic Illusion)

See Shepard tone. Figure 1: Shepard tones forming a Shepard scale, illustrated in a sequencer A Shepard tone is a sound, named after Roger Shepard, consisting of a superposition of sine waves separated by octaves. ...

Computer Science

A special test pattern used to test RAM, hard disks and printers. It is also used as a pattern for secure erasing of media. Look up RAM, Ram, ram in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Typical hard drives of the mid-1990s. ...

 ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVW BCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWX CDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXY DEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ 

References

• Lienhard, John H., "The Sign of the Barber Pole", Engines of our Ingenuity, No. 1635, University of Houston. Accessed December 27, 2005
• "Blood, Bandages and Barber Poles", in The Guide to Life, The Universe and Everything, BBC, November 29, 2002. Accessed December 27, 2005