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This type of spade or shovel was limited in its use to the south west of England, Wales and Ireland. In Wales no other type of shovel was used at all, and it is known in Welsh as a 'rhaw'. It was sometimes known as a Devon spade due to its use in Devon and Cornwall. It is generally used for gardening, and is sometimes issued to roadworkers also. This spade head was picked up from a rubbish dump at a farm called Ffynnonfadog, in Ceredigion, where it was used until the early 1950s.

1 spade head; metal; good condition

1951