Object number
51/129
Collection
Description
Thistles can either be cut down with a scythe, or bruised with a spud or ‘grubber’ before the seed is formed. It has a long wooden handle with a flat iron head in the shape of a thistle, with a cutting edge. Nothing is known of the origins of this thistle spud.
Physical description
1 thistle spud: metal; wood; good condition
Archival history
MERL list / description [Massingham Collection, October 1989] – 'ACC. NO.: 51/129 // NAME: THISTLE SPUD // NEG NO.: 35/202 // STORAGE: ', Mediaeval writers on agriculture forbade the cutting down of thistles before St. John's Day (24th June) since, if they were cut earlier, each root would throw up three or four plants. An old rhyme says: "Thistles cut in May come again next day; thistles cut in June come again soon; cut then in July, they'll be sure to die".
Object name
Material
Associated subject
External document
- L:\MERL\Objects\JISC 2012\35 series negatives\Scans\35_202.tif - High resolution image
