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Peerless Hair Dressing Advertising Broadside

An inventory of the item at Syracuse University

Overview of the Collection

Creator: Peerless Beauty Supplies.
Title: Peerless Hair Dressing Advertising Broadside
Inclusive Dates: 1930s
Quantity: 1 item
Abstract: Advertising broadside, featuring 20 smaller images of Black women's hairstyles
Language: English
Repository: Special Collections Research Center,
Syracuse University Libraries
222 Waverly Avenue
Syracuse, NY 13244-2010
https://library.syracuse.edu/special-collections-research-center

Biographical History

Peerless Beauty Supplies was located in Richmond, Virginia. Peerless Hair Dressing was a product targeted at Black women. Its purpose was to smooth and relax the hair, replacing the natural look of Black hair with something closer to typical Caucasian hair. Such products reflect the cultural and media pressure on Black men and (especially) women to conform to Eurocentric beauty standards.

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Scope and Contents of the Collection

The Peerless Hair Dressing Advertising Broadside is a large point-of-sale poster for Peerless Beauty Supplies in Richmond, Virginia, combining black-and-white photographs with dark blue printing. A banner across the top, dark blue with white lettering, reads "Peerless Hair Dressing on sale here" and a dark blue rectangle in the center gives the name and address of the company, noting that it offers "Everything for The Beauty Salon." Below the banner and surrounding the center block are 20 small oval or rectangular head shots of Black women showing different hair styles; a small notation reads: Photos by "The Browns".

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Restrictions

Access Restrictions

The majority of our archival and manuscript collections are housed offsite and require advance notice for retrieval. Researchers are encouraged to contact us in advance concerning the collection material they wish to access for their research.

Use Restrictions

Written permission must be obtained from SCRC and all relevant rights holders before publishing quotations, excerpts or images from any materials in this collection.

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Subject Headings

Corporate Bodies

Peerless Beauty Supplies.

Subjects

African American women.
Beauty, Personal -- Social aspects.
Hair -- Social aspects.

Places

Richmond (Va.)

Genres and Forms

Advertisements.

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Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Preferred citation for this material is as follows:

Peerless Hair Dressing Advertising Broadside,
Special Collections Research Center,
Syracuse University Libraries

Acquisition Information

Purchase, 2021

Finding Aid Information

Created by: MRC
Date: 28 May 2021
Revision history:

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Inventory

Printed material
Map-Case Advertising broadside, "Peerless Hair Dressing" 1930s - features 20 small photos of Black women's hair styles

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