The History of the Back Scratcher
Although the original inventor of the back scratcher is a matter of conjecture, this useful tool has been around for hundreds of years at the very least, in many different forms but all serving a common purpose.
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Names
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"Back scratcher" and "scratch-back" are the most commonly used names, a direct description of its function. The back scratcher is also called a "magonote," meaning "grandchild's hand" in Japanese.
Universal Design
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Although back scratchers are known by different names all over the world, they are mostly of a universal design: the shape of a hand with outstretched fingers is attached to one end of a stick long enough to comfortably reach an itch. Most back scratchers measure between 12 and 20 inches.
Earliest History
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The earliest inventors of back scratchers were possibly certain species of animals, like apes, who used tree branches to reach an itch. Primitive man very likely mimicked the behavior, thus creating the original concept of the back scratcher.
Materials
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According to some sources, whalebone back scratchers were among the earliest examples (see References). Other materials used to make back scratchers range from ivory and jade to stainless steel, brass, wood, bamboo and plastic.
China
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The back scratcher has had various incarnations during different periods of history. Records show that the Chinese Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty (580 to 618 A.D.) owned a jade back scratcher carved like a piece of bamboo. Instead of the customary hand that ornaments one end of most back scratchers, this ornately fashioned item had a plaque shaped in the Chinese traditional cloud pattern. Jade was the material of choice for the emperor and his court.
Later History
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In the 18th and 19th centuries, courtiers in Europe who wore powdered wigs and elaborate costumes apparently resorted to decorative back scratchers to reach their itches in as subtle and dignified a manner as was possible given the circumstances. In 1920s Shanghai, China, there were fashionable Art Deco back scratchers made of ivory (see Resources).
Evolution
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The conventional back scratcher hand design has evolved to include numerous substitutes, from animal heads to caribou antlers (see Resources). They are manufactured all over the world and sold online (see Resources), mostly in novelty stores, being popular tourism souvenirs. They range in price from less than $1 to more expensive giftware in special packaging.
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- Photo Credit Maureen Katemopoulos
