Rotbart is a company that has quite an interesting history, during WWI, German soldiers began to transition from straight razors to double edged razors and blades. As a result, a new market in German men developed for safety razors and blades. Following WWI, the German razor blade industry gained increased momentum and developed into a major competitor for Gillette. Gillette’s marketing strategy had been to sell inexpensive razors and relatively pricey blades, whereas German companies produced high quality blades in large quantities, and sold them at relatively low prices so they could supply the entire European market.
Hugo Buchner had started his razor blade production in 1907 in Berlin. The Büchner factory had originally been a mechanical workshop, but eventually grew into a factory for machines and other devices. Hugo Büchner produced razor blades at this factory, beginning in 1907, first using the “Luna” brand, later “Mond-Extra”.
Otto Roth started his company in 1913 under the name Roth & Linder G.m.b.H. (the equivalent of an American L.L.C.) Prior to this time, Roth was employed as chief engineer for Hugo Büchner. During the WWI (1914 to 1918), Otto Roth’s practical and well-made razor blades became quite successful, especially among the younger German soldiers. The company began to dominate the German market with its razor and blade products. In 1918 Roth changed the company into the Otto Roth G.m.b.H., and then in the year 1921, by conversion, into an Aktiengesellschaft or A.G., (the equivalent of an American P.L.C.), which created an even more favorable structure for the business.
In 1919 – Otto Roth registered the Rotbart trademark. Otto Roth’s surname, Roth, is pronounced in German almost the same as the word “rot” which is German for the word “red”. Rotbart means “red beard”, which might have been a good shaving brand name on its own. However Red Beard, or in Italian “Barbarossa” was also the nickname of the German Holy Roman Emperor Frederick I, the red-bearded hero, a symbol of German unity, which probably was the reason why the brand name Rotbart was such a perfect choice for razors and blades made for the German market.
You can find some more information and cool pics of various models here, credit to www.Shavinguniverse.com and all the contributors to the thread.
This particular model is very interesting and we are yet identify it, but if one had a look at the development of razors in general we'd have to guess this razor was one of the very first models, maybe even before Gillette got their fingers into the cookie jar.
If you can find some more info on this model please let us know, regardless whether you buy it or not.
The razor has a few bent teeth, but apart from that is in very good shape, the baseplate sits nice and sturdy on the handle, and the finish on what seems to be a razor produced in an all-brass finish is nice and uniform, the barrel is crack free and threading on the components still in good nick.