Barber's Pole

choi

Moira Hodgson, Untangling the Knots; A strand of hair from Che Guevara's corpse went to a lone bidder for $119,500. Wall Street Journal, Mar 5, 2016
(book review on Kurt Stein, Hair; A human history. Pegasus, 2016)

Quote: The book is "full of weird facts. Consider the story behind those pretty red, white and blue poles in barbershops. Until the 18th century, barbers were also surgeons. The pole wasthere for customers to hoold onto, gritting their teeth while their legs were bled or their boils were lanced. The red and white stood for blood and bandage. The blue was there, write Mr Stein, 'to symbolize venous blood.'

My comment: So the book says. There is no need to read the rest of the review.