Long Nosed Beak Horn Stake

Date1750-1820

MediumIron / steel

DimensionsOH: 14" OL: 41 1/2" Taper of beak: 1 1/2" - 5/8"

Credit LineGift of Judith and William McMillen

Object number2012-28

DescriptionLong-nosed "beak horn" stake. One flange is flat-topped with two beveled edges, a hole near the end and a skewed tip. Round-sectioned, long tapering "beak" with a skewed end. Squared post with chamfered corners.
Label TextThis large, heavy tool had a myriad of uses, limited only by the various shapes of its working surfaces. With a heavy integral post, stakes were set into square holes in either workbenches or tree stumps, and functioned much like blacksmith's anvils.

Nicknamed a "beak horn" stake for its appearance, the beak end was used to shape a piece of tin into a rounded shape, like the cylindrical body of a mug, its gracefully curved handle, or even a candle mold. The skewed end could be used for upsetting or "burring" and edge as part of the seaming process.

Opposite the beak is a long, flat-topped flange which was used to create perfectly straight folds by beating the tin along one of its sides. Generally speaking, the top of the flange provided a good flat working surface, and the hole near its tip had innumerable uses.

As a modern screw driver can also be used to open a can of paint, these early tools were used for other, less obvious purposes by the highly creative and artistic tinsmiths that made their livelihoods using them.