Spear ?

Bumpstick

Hero Member
Jun 1, 2008
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Lake Country WI.
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MineLab/ Excalibur&Exterra705/ Gold Bug
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting

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It's a "gig". Down South it would be called a frog gig. I don't know if there are Bullfrogs in Wisconsin, so it may have been used to gig fish. Tony
 

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My guess is - a 18th century meat roasting fork that was hung next to the fireplace when not in use .
 

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How long is the entire fork? Is it handmade or are there makers marks on it?
 

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Jazdo said:
How long is the entire fork? Is it handmade or are there makers marks on it?

13"is the overall length and 4" wide at tip; Haven't seen any frogs that big!

No markings at all; looks hand forged and rust pocked where handle may have been attached.

It has a square lower shaft that flattens and tapers where the hols is.
 

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Bumpstick said:
Jazdo said:
How long is the entire fork? Is it handmade or are there makers marks on it?

13"is the overall length and 4" wide at tip; Haven't seen any frogs that big!

No markings at all; looks hand forged and rust pocked where handle may have been attached.

It has a square lower shaft that flattens and tapers where the hols is.
We do in South Florida. The one I pictured is 3 1/2 inches wide.

B & M 4PK Spear

Overall Length 9"

Overall Width 31/2"

Tine Length 31/2"

Tine Diameter 9/32"
 

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I'd call it a trident too, but I think Neptune was the God of the Seas. I don't know if he owned it though? M :wink: nty
 

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I am thinking that its a fish spear for catching flat fish. Here are two photos, these spears are from the 19th century. It looks very close to number 24 I think, it could be that the teeth were broken off or worn down (on rocks and such). Number 20 has its teeth on the shanks, not on the ends. Used in shallow water to catch fish when (maybe) it was not allowed to use a net.
 

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It is definatly a spear, but from the size and disign I think it is what we called a "Sucker spear" in Northern Mn. Dark house fish spears were all steel 5 or 6 feet long while the ones we used in the rivers while the spring Sucker run was on looked like your find with a wooden handle attached so you could pitch it at a fish and it would semi float so you could retrieve it. The points also looked like that after throwing and jabbing into the rocks on the river bottom. Suckers on the Mississippi are called Red Horses and get big and taste very good smoked.
 

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Go back and see if you can find the dude that was holding it...
 

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The fishing spear is the way I was looking at it.
The lake trout have a spawning season around here and move into the rivers around the end of June.
The native Americans lived all along these streams way back when and then the fur traders came stomping around.
The hole in the shaft may have been used with a string to help in retrieval.
Thanks for all the input from every one and the picks to.

I bet if I where to try and spear a lake trout around here today; I would get a free ride to the stockade and they would keep my truck.
 

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Now that you've found that, you should try to dig up a Magic Helmet, too!

 

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