Strata: What Is It?

A. Razor

B. Crowbar

C. Fire poker

D. Cane

E. Ruler

Answer: (A) Razor

Double the sharpness, double the speed? With two cutting edges, this bronze razor was the Gillette Mach 3 of ancient times.

Called the notched razor or cutting-out knife, this razor style was popular during Egypt’s New Kingdom. Its two blades are located on opposite ends of its handle. The first cutting edge curves from the razor’s tip to a notch in the upper part of the handle where the blade meets the handle. On the other end of the handle, the second blade resembles a slightly flaring chisel.

Dated to the 14th–13th centuries B.C.E., this razor comes from a tomb at Deir el-Balah,^a a site in the center of the Gaza Strip on the Mediterranean Sea. Similar razors have been found throughout Egypt, as well as from Late Bronze Age contexts at Beth Shean, Lachish and Tell Jemmeh in the land of Canaan.