Plumb Bob? Sinker?

[KA1J]

I found this a week ago at an old Colonial farm which was farmed till the early 1900’s. There are some areas where hay is mowed but no tilling since around 1916 or thereabouts. It was at least 10” down on a hilltop overlooking the Atlantic and no sign of structure nearby except the ubiquitous New England Stone walls.

It is made of lead, the yellow oxide skin is thick and deep throughout. 1 7/8” long, 1” at the widest & with a ½” bevel that goes to a point. The waffle pattern is made by dents in the surface as opposed to elevations on the surface. Where the body tapers to a point on the front, the waffling continues. There are decided lips like the edges of a pie crust on both sides of the top making me think it was poured and a lid brought on top to finish the mold. There is an obvious place for a hole at the round end but none passes through.

I have seen sinkers with points but none that are flat on the sides with a taper as this has, never have I seen a textured sinker or Plumb Bob. It doesn't make me think of a sinker as a first thought. When held by the tiny round area it hangs perfectly straight, point down. I see the possibility of a Plumb Bob with perhaps a “C” clip in the “hole” and a string on the C clip, perhaps to reduce the influence of a knot on the string to hold it in place and allow free motion. I do suspect it to be quite old, likely from the Colonial period based on where it was found and being on a hilltop, it would tend to remain on the surface but it was quite deep so it has been there a long time. Pure conjecture, I have no idea what this is and nobody has yet offered an opinion as to what it might be.

Thoughts?

 

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[smokeythecat]

Somebody's "I'm bored" project. Keep it, it's a cool piece of history.

 

[glass half fool]

Nice find Part of the fun is wondering what you have sometimes

 

[CaptEsteban]

May be a homemade fishing net weight ?

 

[KA1J]

Thanks for the reply.

It's possible, I don't know. Looking at it closely one can see the smooth round loop where the attachment string is to be placed, whatever it is for. The loop is smooth on both sides but has a lip around it contiguous with the edges from where it was made in a mold. The thing I don't get is why the 1/2" textured bevel comes to a point, if a sinker, why not make it the same thickness throughout, why bother making a point which would to some degree make the weight less? If a Plumb Bob, why not make the point at the center of the tip instead of having one flat side and one beveled to a point? Whatever it is, I suspect it is not in its finished form, likely the eye would have to have been perforated and maybe the lip from the casting cut away from the loop and the two sides?

That said, it might well be a fishing net weight. I have never seen texture on any kind of lead weight nor have I seen that on a plumb bob either. Whoever brought it to where I found it, had to walk up a fairly steep hill & up some distance from the ocean.

 

[Phishfarmer]

I googled ornamental antique dress weight and found:

 

[releventchair]

Could be a file was rolled or pressed on the lead to make the pattern.
More a decorative ,jewelry type pendant than a fishing weight or plumb bob.

 

[KA1J]

Capt Esteban might be the closest.

I was detecting on public property yesterday and a suspicious homeowner called the police on me. I'd knocked on her door the day before to ask who owned the open space and she was immediately suspicious of me but informed me the town did, so I wasn't surprised when I saw the officer crossing the field. There was no issue, I wasn't breaking the law and he took an interest in what I was finding and the CTX 3030. I'd just gotten there and all I'd found was some aluminum bits and brass/bronze electrical parts so I showed him the junk I'd pouched to recycle & explained what I do with the junk but showed him the photos above that were on my phone.

Immediately he said it's a fishing weight and I asked how he knew. He said there is a #2 on it so it's a 2 ounce weight. I'd never seen the @2 on it but there it is, on the side like a Where's Waldo. The officer has good eyes, he caught it the second the photo came up. He makes sinkers but he had never seen any sinker with texture. I weighed it and 1.95 Oz so he's dead on. As I'm typing this I'm thinking of the markings and wonder if maybe it was made from a home-made mold in the day and the texturing is supposed to be folk art representing fish scales? Still guessing at that detail but if I would have seen the 2 on the side I would have known it was a non finished sinker that needed to have the hole pushed through to be complete.

Love it when things figure out.

 

[CaptEsteban]

I have a hatchet , Shingler's hatchet, that has that " Basketweave " pattern on it's head. Maybe something like that was used to beat the lead & flatten it.