A piece of Sulawesi in South Africa?

kronckew · 10th October 2016, 11:51 AM

is this the same place where victorian hair oil came from -ie. macassar oil? the fad for greasy hair caused wives to oplace washable lace decorated covers on the headrest area of lounge chairs to keep the oil off the upholstery. they are known as anti-macassars.

ariel · 10th October 2016, 01:06 PM

Kronckew,

I did not know that. I have read the word in so many old novels, but had no idea about its origin and quirky meaning.
You made my day:-)
Many thanks!

David · 10th October 2016, 03:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kronckew

is this the same place where victorian hair oil came from -ie. macassar oil? the fad for greasy hair caused wives to oplace washable lace decorated covers on the headrest area of lounge chairs to keep the oil off the upholstery. they are known as anti-macassars.

Macassar oil is apparently so named because certain ingredients for it were procured from Makassar, Sulawesi. It has nothing to do with the place of the same name in South Africa though.

ariel · 10th October 2016, 04:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by David

Macassar oil is apparently so named because certain ingredients for it were procured from Makassar, Sulawesi. It has nothing to do with the place of the same name in South Africa though.

I thought that was exactly what Kronckew had in mind.

Jean · 10th October 2016, 04:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by David

Macassar oil is apparently so named because certain ingredients for it were procured from Makassar, Sulawesi. It has nothing to do with the place of the same name in South Africa though.

Yeah, check on Wikipedia, it was apparently made from coconut oil & ylang-ylang, 2 products from Indonesia...

kronckew · 10th October 2016, 05:26 PM

we are treasure troves of highly useful information.

i use coconut oil to soften my beard. no ylang^2 tho.

Johan van Zyl · 11th October 2016, 07:52 AM

The current bringer of this particular little "treasure trove of highly useful information" (moi) did not know about anti-macassar, himself! Once again I have learned something!

10th October 2016, 11:51 AM	#1
kronckew Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Room 101, Glos. UK Posts: 4,249	is this the same place where victorian hair oil came from -ie. macassar oil? the fad for greasy hair caused wives to oplace washable lace decorated covers on the headrest area of lounge chairs to keep the oil off the upholstery. they are known as anti-macassars.

10th October 2016, 01:06 PM	#2
ariel Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Ann Arbor, MI Posts: 5,503	Kronckew, I did not know that. I have read the word in so many old novels, but had no idea about its origin and quirky meaning. You made my day:-) Many thanks!

10th October 2016, 05:26 PM	#6
kronckew Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Room 101, Glos. UK Posts: 4,249	we are treasure troves of highly useful information. i use coconut oil to soften my beard. no ylang^2 tho.

11th October 2016, 07:52 AM	#7
Johan van Zyl Member Join Date: Sep 2016 Location: I live in Gordon's Bay, a village in the Western Cape Province in South Africa. Posts: 126	The current bringer of this particular little "treasure trove of highly useful information" (moi) did not know about anti-macassar, himself! Once again I have learned something!