July 17th 2023 - Lather Games Day 17
- Brush: Omega 11137
- Razor: GEM Micromatic Open Comb
- Blade: GEM PTFE (9)
- Lather: Declaration Grooming/Noble Otter/House of Mammoth - Cerberus
- Post Shave: Declaration Grooming/Noble Otter/House of Mammoth - Cerberus
- Fragrance: Declaration Grooming/Noble Otter/House of Mammoth - Cerberus
I have been saving the last few sprays from my bottle of Cerberus and was lucky enough to recently pick up a soap and splash to go with it so today I am enjoying my first and most likely last (until I end up searching for another bottle of the frag, I love it that much) trickhole of this phenomenal scent. Milksteak is a base I'm not very familiar with, only having one other soap in it and that one I use sparingly since it is special (Slut Dragon). It is so soft! I built a nice face lather and reveled in the stone fruit and resinous goodness of a triple dose of Cerberus.
As for today's challenge, I don't have OSMA or any other (non luxury) alum. It was one thing I never picked up when I was starting out and have never felt the need for. Some cold water and an alcohol splash are how I prefer to finish off my shaves, rubbing a rock on my face seems a bit woo-woo to me. But I'm a big believer in "you do you" so if it makes people happy, keep rubbing that rock on your face. In fact, this is the only Ozma I get down with. I may have annoyed whomever is djudging this post, if they are in the pro-alum camp, so I will close with a bit of alum history.
Historically, alum was a huge component of early international trade. It was used in many things, like the manufacture of glass and dyeing of cloth. For a long time the Turks held a monopoly on the production of alum, and they grew tremendously rich from this trade. But the Turks would use the money from the alum trade to wage war against Christianity, so it was very fortuitous when a huge deposit of alum was discovered in 1453 in Papal territory outside of Rome. Pope Pius II and his successor started a new monopoly in the European alum trade, effectively banning trade in Turkish alum under threat of excommunication. The Medici bank worked with the Popes to control this trade and both parties made assloads of ducats from it. The Papacy used the money from the alum trade to wage war against the Turks as revenge.
Fast forward to the reign of Henry VIII, who broke England away from Catholicism when he married Anne Boleyn. Henry was almost always close to war with the Pope and lived under constant threat of excommunication. That put pressure on the English industries that needed alum to function, because the Pope could threaten to cut off England's supply. It has been suggested that one of the reasons Henry was pushed to ally himself with the House of Cleves for his fourth marriage was that alum had been discovered in Cleves, and securing this alliance with marriage would guarantee a non-Papal supply of alum for England.
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