A backscratcher (occasionally known as a scratch-back) is a tool used for relieving an itch in an area that cannot easily be reached just by one's own hands, typically the back.

Composition and variation

They are generally long, slender, rod-shaped, tools good for scratching one's back, with a knob on one end for holding and a

rake Rake may refer to: * Rake (stock character), a man habituated to immoral conduct * Rake (theatre), the artificial slope of a theatre stage Science and technology * Rake receiver, a radio receiver * Rake (geology), the angle between a feature on a ...

-like device, sometimes in the form of a human

hand A hand is a prehensile, multi-fingered appendage located at the end of the forearm or forelimb of primates such as humans, chimpanzees, monkeys, and lemurs. A few other vertebrates such as the koala (which has two opposable thumbs on each "h ...

, on the other end to perform the actual scratching. Many others are shaped like horse hooves, claws, or are retractable, to reach further down the back. Though a backscratcher could feasibly be fashioned from most materials, most modern backscratchers are made of plastic, though examples can be found made of wood,

whalebone Baleen is a filter-feeding system inside the mouths of baleen whales. To use baleen, the whale first opens its mouth underwater to take in water. The whale then pushes the water out, and animals such as krill are filtered by the baleen and re ...

, tortoiseshell, horn, cane, bamboo, ivory,

baleen Baleen is a filter-feeding system inside the mouths of baleen whales. To use baleen, the whale first opens its mouth underwater to take in water. The whale then pushes the water out, and animals such as krill are filtered by the baleen and ...

and in some cases in history,

narwhal The narwhal, also known as a narwhale (''Monodon monoceros''), is a medium-sized toothed whale that possesses a large "tusk" from a protruding canine tooth. It lives year-round in the Arctic waters around Greenland, Canada and Russia. It is o ...

tusks, due to the status afforded by relieving itches with a supposed unicorn horn (an example of

conspicuous consumption In sociology and in economics, the term conspicuous consumption describes and explains the consumer practice of buying and using goods of a higher quality, price, or in greater quantity than practical. In 1899, the sociologist Thorstein Veblen co ...

). Backscratchers vary in length between 12 and 24 ins. (30–60 cm.).

Backscratchers through history

The Inuit carved backscratchers from whale teeth. Backscratchers were also observed to have developed separately in many other areas, such as ancient China, where Chinese farmers occasionally used backscratchers as a tool to check livestock for fleas and ticks. In recent history backscratchers were also employed as a kind of rake to keep in order the huge "heads" of powdered hair worn by ladies in the 18th and 19th centuries. In the past, backscratchers were often highly decorated, and hung from the waist as accessories, with the more elaborate examples being silver-mounted, or in rare instances with an ivory carved hand with rings on its fingers. The scratching hand was sometimes replaced by a rake or a bird's

talon Talon or talons may refer to: Science and technology * Talon (anatomy), the claw of a bird of prey * Brodifacoum, a rodenticide, also known as the brand Talon * TALON (database), a database maintained by the US Air Force * Talon, an anti-vehicle- ...

. Generally, the hand could represent either a left or right hand, but the Chinese variety usually bore a right hand. Although not specifically used for only back scratching, young

Chiricahua Chiricahua ( ) is a band of Apache Native Americans. Based in the Southern Plains and Southwestern United States, the Chiricahua (Tsokanende ) are related to other Apache groups: Ndendahe (Mogollon, Carrizaleño), Tchihende (Mimbreño), Sehende ...

men in training and women going through a puberty ritual traditionally had to use a ceremonial wooden scratcher made from a fruit bearing tree instead of scratching with their fingernails or hands. Young men who did not use the scratcher for scratching were reported to develop skin that was too soft.Opler, Morris E.; & Hoijer, Harry. (1940). The raid and war-path language of the Chiricahua Apache. ''American Anthropologist'', ''42'' (4), 617-634.

References

External links

{{Commons category, Backscratcher * “The Scratch-Back,” at the end o
August 19
in '' The Book of Days'' by Robert Chambers. Chinese inventions Domestic implements Hand tools Traditional medicine