Details on the huge and very cool colonial andiron slowly being revealed

[Bill D. (VA)]

If everyone remembers, my buddy Dan and I extricated this large and unusual iron artifact a few weeks ago. It was entangled in a giant mass of roots on a slope just above a spring stream, and adjacent to a colonial site we were hunting that dates to the 17th century. I volunteered to take the 20+ pound artifact home and try to clean it up with electrolysis. It's been in the tank for about 3 weeks now, and its been a very slow process and still has quite a ways to go. But some interesting details are starting to be revealed. Especially interesting is the top which looks like the head of an Aztec, Incan or Egyptian queen with the facial details showing up nicely along with what appears to be some sort of headdress or crown on her head. Further down it looks like I can see folded arms. On the back you can see where the horizontal bar that supported the wood was attached. Even once I get this totally cleaned up in a few more weeks I'm not sure how well this piece will display as the subtle features may be hard to make out with the dark background. But none-the-less, I'm going to see this project through until the end and we'll see how things turn out. The first pic below shows how it appeared immediately after recovery in the woods, and the remainder were taken this morning showing progress made thus far. I'm assuming this may date to the mid-1600s to mid-1700s, but please chime in if you can more precisely ID this piece. Based on its huge size, it must have been used in a very large fireplace in the manor house we know exists somewhere on this site.

** Sorry but the pics didn't load in proper sequence (yet again!). The 3rd pic shows the andiron immediately after recovery.

 

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[ARC]

Super cool... I have no idea on any info... have you been back to search for the other?

 

[pong12211]

Very cool. Not something you see everyday. Thanks for sharing.

 

[muddpuppy]

This is an AWESOME artifact. Iron is sometimes discounted. Sweet recovery and I am looking forward to seeing it later! Keep Swinging!!

 

[mangum]

Very cool Bill, I can't wait to see the final result.

 

[Sidevalve45]

Looks like a naughty Nellie boot jack.

 

[terpfan]

Looks like you are making good progress on the andiron, Bill. I hope you'll post more photos when the process is complete. As for identifying the figure, my naive colonial mind would have guessed it was a native American. It certainly appears to be a well-made piece that would be found in an important home. Is their any chance you'll be able to find the matching twin piece, since they are usually in pairs?

 

[CRUSADER]

I can't remember the name, but it must be a broken 'pair' connected from his nether regions. (In a fire place)

 

[Bill D. (VA)]

Super cool... I have no idea on any info... have you been back to search for the other?

Very unlikely the other one would turn up, but I'd definitely like to go back and hunt that ravine and stream bed a bit more.

 

[Bill D. (VA)]

Looks like you are making good progress on the andiron, Bill. I hope you'll post more photos when the process is complete. As for identifying the figure, my naive colonial mind would have guessed it was a native American. It certainly appears to be a well-made piece that would be found in an important home. Is their any chance you'll be able to find the matching twin piece, since they are usually in pairs?

Highly unlikely Steve, but you never know. I'd definitely like to hit that spot again.

 

[dixie bee]

Can you get a pic of the back? I only ask because, I too, think it looks like it could be a boot jack.

 

[pepperj]

Great job cleaning up the blob Bill, I am going to go with it being a boot jack also as mentioned in a previous post.

 

[joeyfresh]

It's an andiron and its cleaning up great Bill!

 

[Bill D. (VA)]

It does resemble a boot jack, but I'm still going with it being the front section of a colonial andiron. The base seems to wide to be a boot jack, and on the back there's a scar where a small rectangular bar was attached. I believe this was where the bar that held the firewood joined the huge front face of the andiron. This bar would appear to be too small and unstable to have been a support for a boot jack. Looks like I'll have to send this to an expert I know who works for the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation for a definitive ID. Appreciate all the input here.

 

[Steve in PA]

Nice work on that piece Bill. It's true identity is being revealed

 

[Sidevalve45]

I'm tellin ya it's a Naughty Nellie....

 

[Bill D. (VA)]

I'm tellin ya it's a Naughty Nellie....

I hear ya SV, but this came from a site where nothing later than about 1810 has been recovered. And most finds have been from the 1650-1750 time period. Not even sure boot jacks existed that far back. We'll see what my colonial artifact expert has to say.

 

[leviathanrick]

That's a great find. I like your set up for cleaning that large piece. Would you mind sharing how you made it? I have a couple of large pieces is like to clean.

 

[Bill D. (VA)]

That's a great find. I like your set up for cleaning that large piece. Would you mind sharing how you made it? I have a couple of large pieces is like to clean.

I'm using an auto battery charger for the power source. One lead is attached to a sheet of stainless steel (the sacrificial anode), and the other to the iron artifact. I can't recall at the moment which lead goes to the iron and which goes to the anode, but you need to have these hooked up correctly. I'm using a large plastic tub filled with water and a cup or 2 of baking soda. Then just plug in the charger and watch it fizz. Takes quite a while to clean a large artifact , but then you need to properly dry and preserve the item to prevent further corrosion. If you have questions please feel free to PM me.

 

[BuckleBoy]

Great find there, and some fantastic detail peeking through. The only andirons I know anything about are the CW era ones which were made of brass. I'm hopeless for the earlier ones, unless there happens to be a photo or info in one of Hume's books... I don't recall any mention of them there though.