Before the invention of the modern nail clipper, people would use small knives to trim or pare their nails. Descriptions of nail trimming in literature date as far back as the 8th century BC.
Only once farming was invented did life become less hard and so nails needed cutting. Besides wear from use, prehistoric people undoubtedly chewed their toenails. For much of my life so far I have managed quite well without needing any tool to cut my toenails.
The barber's equipment included shears, razors, small-blade knives, tweezers and a curved scoop for cleaning dirt under the nails. It's not clear which implement did the actual cutting, but the small knife seems to be the easiest to wield safely.
There have been various literary references to people cutting their nails throughout history, but the tool of choice is almost always a small penknife or a blade. Depending on social status, cultural tradition, and place in history, carrying a knife may have been as common as putting on clothes.
The nail-scraper remains in use up to the Viking period; Vikings believed that one should not cut one's nails, as nail clippings would add to the ship made of the fingernails of the dead which plays a role in Ragnarok.
They could theoretically have used a flint edge to trim them, or a rough stone to file them down. However, we don't have any firm evidence of 'cavemanicure' at all, since no fingernails or toenails survive from any Stone Age burial sites.
Before the invention of the modern nail clipper, people would use small knives to trim or pare their nails. Descriptions of nail trimming in literature date as far back as the 8th century BC.
In the general population, inmates are allowed to buy nail clippers and disposable razors in the commissary. In segregation, they are given out, along with disposable razors at specific times, written accountability and inspection when picked up.
Women soaked their nails in a combination of egg whites, gelatine, beeswax and dyes from flower petals; roses and orchids were the most popular. The result was shiny nails tinted reddish pink.
All Native Americans had access to cutting tools. A piece of broken mussel shell might have been sufficiently sharp to cut softened toenails. Obsidian made an excellent cutting tool. I read somewhere (and I forget where) that a scientific study found that an obsidian blade was sharper than a modern surgical scalpel.
Cleopatra used plant extracts to die her nails a deep blood red, and other mummified Pharaohs were found with henna stained nails.
The ancient Romans also practiced dental hygiene.
They used frayed sticks and abrasive powders to brush their teeth. These powders were made from ground-up hooves, pumice, eggshells, seashells, and ashes.
They cut them with a small sharp knife; file them with a piece of hard pumice; polish them with fine clay rubbing compound. They didn't cut the cuticle, they pushed it back with a piece of wood after soaking. Natural paints were used, and had to be touched up pretty often. All of this if you were rich.
The Caveman Era
Cavemen removed hair from their head and face to prevent mites and other insects from forming nests and laying eggs in their hair. How, you ask? Without the means to create a razor, cavemen had to get creative. They scraped off their hair with a sharpened rock or a seashell.
When the first humans migrated to northern climates about 45,000 years ago, they devised rudimentary clothing to protect themselves from the cold. They draped themselves with loose-fitting hides that doubled as sleeping bags, baby carriers and hand protection for chiseling stone.
And if you've ever used a paring knife to peel an apple, that's how fingernails were cut before there was a designated tool for it, whether using an actual knife or small scissors.
The History
Let's go back to 3000 BC china where aristocratic Chinese women had a habit of decorating their nails. With the help of a mixture of beeswax, egg whites, gelatin and gum Arabic, they would soak their nails overnight inside the mixture, roses and colored dyes from their gardens were also added.
The short answer is we have evolved to have nails because they help us pick things up (like food), pick things off (like bugs), and hold tightly onto things. Early humans who had these type of nails (instead of claws) tended to live long enough to have babies and pass on the fingernails gene to their kids.
Long fingernails were a mark of high status indicating that one did not have to engage in manual labor, and in order to protect the nails from breaking Qing noblewomen wore metal guards. The guards were very often worn in pairs, one on the little finger and another on the ring finger.
No one knows for sure where the shaved leg aesthetic came from. There's speculation that it started among inmates who were bodybuilding and would shave their bodies for maximum muscle definition. Other inmates say that it's a sign of cleanliness and started off among skinhead inmates.
Staples like push-ups, sit-ups and bodyweight squats can be varied to make them more challenging, so much so that mastering them will undoubtedly lead to increased muscle mass that would make your average gym goer rethink their plan. The big equalizer here is effort and consistency.
Rules and regulations vary from prison to prison. A person's hair is not always cut before entering. However, the main reasons for the cases when a woman is required to remove hair extensions and/or a man's hair is cut, is because they may hide things in their hair and to prevent the spread of lice.
Hygiene was all the rage during the Victorian era, so clean nails were a must. The most popular type of manicure was simply buffing and trimming nails, and even tinting them with red oil. Fingernail maintenance was originally considered a medical industry.
Furniture predating 1790 will include “rose-head” nails identified by their irregular, rose-shaped heads. They were made individually by blacksmiths. Square-head nails were made from the late 1700s until about 1830.
Diana Armstrong (USA) has achieved a new record for the longest fingernails ever. Here's why she grew them to an astonishing 42 ft 10.4 in (1,306.58 cm).