Tuesday, 5 April 2011

Surprisingly specific

Surprisingly specific word of the day: Antimacassar



Image Attribution - Chris McKenna, Thryduulf
Image Attribution - Chris McKenna (Thryduulf)


Antimacassars are those small pieces of cloth draped, ever so fetchingly, over the headrests of commercial passenger transport vehicles. Their purpose is to extend the life of fabrics, and their use and name can be traced to the Victorian and Edwardian periods, when it was common for men to wear ‘Macassar oil’ in their hair.