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Liturgical scissors are a rare sight. They are still seen and used in convents and some seminaries. The scissors are used in the ceremony by which clerics are made (tonsure) and the ceremony of first vows for nuns. The cutting of the hair in the rites permits us to consider what degree of perfection is required in a cleric or female monastic as they are called to renounce the whole world.
To quote St. Robert Bellarmine:
"The ceremony, as it is described in the Roman Pontifical, consists in first cutting the hair of the head, by which rite is signified the laying aside of all vain and superfluous desires, such as thoughts and desires of temporal goods, riches, honors, and pleasures, and others of the same nature; and at the same time, those whose hair is being cut are required to repeat the fifth verse of the Fifteenth Psalm: 'The Lord is the portion of my inheritance and of my cup. It is Thou that wilt restore my inheritance to me.' Then the bishop orders a white surplice to be brought, which he puts on the cleric, saying these words of the apostle Paul to the Ephesians: 'Put on the new man, who, according to God, is created in justice and holiness of truth.' There is no particular office appointed for a cleric, but it is customary for him to serve the priest at his private Mass." (Source: The Art of Dying Well by St. Robert Bellarmine, pp. 93-94).
Sometimes vintage versions of scissors can be found on ebay.it (the Italian version of ebay). The pair of scissors seen here was made in Germany in circa the 1920s and imported to the USA by a New York company called W. H. Morley & Sons, importers of knives from Germany and Austria (in business from 1913-1927).
The scissors are for sale in Argentina, with free shipping anywhere in the world. It is so rare I hope someone will purchase it and maybe donate it to the FSSP seminary in Denton, NE or to a convent that will cherish its liturgical function for the cutting of the hair of sisters during their first profession. For those interested, click here.
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