Images(2)

Tin Tools 2014-49; 2014-55; 2014-56; 2014-57; 2014-58; 2014-59; 2014-60; 2014-61; 2014-69; 2014 ...

Beak Horn Stake

Date1770-1820

OriginAmerica or England

MediumIron and steel

DimensionsOL 14 3/8" OH: 12 3/4"

Credit LineGift of Stephen Eisenhart

Object number2014-57

DescriptionShort "beak horn" stake. One flange is of rectangular section with a rounded top and a skewed tip. Round-sectioned, tapering "beak" with a square end. Squared post with chamfered corners and a stepped-down tapering tang.
Label TextThis tool had a myriad of uses, limited only by the various shapes of its working surfaces. With a substantial 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.

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.
ProvenanceFrom the Eisenhart collection of tinsmithing tools.