Is the dainty, lace handkerchief, symbol of genteelness and a love token for poets from Shakespeare onward, headed for the scrap yard of similar vanities?
The emergence of the mask as essential protective equipment for men and women alike, seems to suggest a definite slowdown in sales for a product category that is estimated to be worth approximately $10 billion globally.
Growth, however, had been flat, even before this pandemic, as more and more men have learnt to blow their nose and wipe their brow into a tissue.
It has happened before, beautiful objects rendered redundant by changes in social mores give way to others more in tune with what people need.