Found this yesterday while digging near a section corner. Made of solid porcelain.
flat iron?
Pure guess here, but with the hole in it, a piece of jewelry?
Any petroleum tank batteries around there?
Peter Ehlert, post: 395704, member: 60 wrote: flat iron?
What's a flat iron?
Well, I think it is called an engineers scale! 🙂
Nate The Surveyor, post: 395715, member: 291 wrote: Well, I think it is called an engineers scale! 🙂
Now that thar is funy!
Tom Adams, post: 395712, member: 7285 wrote: What's a flat iron?
For ironing clothing, clip on handle.
Agree with Peter.
That is probably early homestead era. Neat find!
http://www.ebay.com/itm/ANTIQUE-CLOTHES-IRON-4-1-2-LBS-HEAVY-METAL-NICE-/142142610333?hash=item21185c1b9d:g:F4gAAOSw2GlXHYF7
Peter probably has it. Here it is, in cast iron.
grandma had one of these, but different shape... very similar to the original post (not used in my lifetime).
several were heated on the stove top, then clip on the handle when a hotter one was needed.
stone or porcelain would be more practical.
Ancient Chinese plumb bob?
I would have guessed sash weight, depending on how heavy it is.
A clothes iron doesn't seem right to me, as real ones - actually made of iron - have been around for a long time, and the ones I've seen (we used to play with a couple when I was a kid, the neighbors had them lying around in their backyard) were much larger, at least 6" long, maybe 8"). And the hole looks like it was made for attaching the object to something other than a handle.
But I don't have a better suggestion as to what it is.
A tooth from Smaug's dentures?
😉
My initial guess was a weight used on the end of a tank gauging tape. Most I have seen are brass but porcelain would make sense too because ferrous metals can cause sparks...disastrous if your on top of a tank battery. I imagined the half round with one side flat could fit in a pipe full of viscous fluid and allow flow on the flat side to equalize the fluid in the pipe. I did some research and found no examples of a porcelain gauging weight...but it looks like if you clean it up and get a handle you could iron the wrinkles out of your coveralls with it!
Ceramic was used for electrical insulators.
okay, how about an old flapper for a comode tank ? Was there ever an answer to this ?
this just in from a family member.... she said "Uno de sus tantos usos" (one of the many uses)
