A nice old mattock...

[gben]

Every inch of this mattock seems to have a story to tell:

 

[ithinkverydeeply]

Wow! What is that thing about?

 

[garry3]

Canvas in the eye and maybe a wedge, repointed bits?

 

[Dusty One]

Real nice one !!

 

[gben]

My favorite old tools are those with a known history or that wear their history on their sleeve as this mattock does. A few old tools I have found marked with the name of their original owner, I have found and returned to their descendants, others I have found the history of I will just keep with the tools in case someone cares at all after I am dead, which is unlikely. This mattock came out of an acquaintances garden shed after he died, he was in his 70s and living on his parent's and uncle's old property which had two houses on it. His father and uncle were born around 1900, and many items on the property originally belonged to his grandparents, so the mattock could have been in that one family for over 100 years.