51/23

This spud is a thatching tool, used as a mallet when patching old thatch. It was thrust into the thatch at the eaves in order to make space for the new yealms (compact sections) of straw. This spud was found embedded in the thatch of an old barn when it was dismantled in the 1930s.

1 thresher's spud; wood; fair condition; worn

Citation in publication [H. J. Massingham, 'Country Relics' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1939)] – ' The equipment is the same when a roof is rethatched, except for the addition of a thatching spud still used by the older thatchers and unchanged in shape for many generations. It is a light, squarish slab of wood nearly 10 in. [inches] long and 7 in. [inches] broad, with one end chamfered on both sides to an edge and an oblong slit cut out at the other end through which the fingers pass when the tool is grasped. It is thrust up into the old thatch a the eaves in order to make an opening for the new yealm to be made fast at its thin end. The worn spud found in my Hermitage was found embedded in an ancient timber barn tottering to its fall and in the process of being stripped.' (p.13), MERL 'Catalogue index' card – ‘SPUD [‘(Thatcher's)’ Scored through]// DATE ACQUIRED: January, 1951 // GROUP: CRAFTS- STRAW- THATCH // NEGATIVE: 35/41 // PERIOD: Unknown // PLACE OF ORIGIN: The H. J. Massingham Collection // NUMBER: 51/23M // DESCRIPTION: This tool was found embedded in the thatch of an old barn at Long Crendon, Bucks, which was being dismantled in the mid-1930's. The spud is used in patching old thatch. It is thrust into the thatch at the eaves in order to make way for the new YEALMS of straw. // This specimen is made of 7/8"wood and is 10 1/8" long and 6" wide. A hole is cut in the top to form a handle and the working end is tapered to a thin edge.', MERL list / description [Massingham Collection, October 1989] – 'ACC. NO.: 51/23 // NAME: THATCHER'S SPUD // NEG NO.: 35/41 // STORAGE: P. Ex. [Permanent Exhibition] Thatching.'

1930