Spade

Date: 1100s - 1400s

This spade is carved from a single piece of ash, with a handle made probably of walnut. The blade is off-set, providing a ledge for the digger's foot. Wooden spades were sometimes fitted with iron edges to reinforce the blade. This one was found in excavations in Southwark in 1998, in a badly drained area between Tooley Street and the river. It might have been used by a labourer digging drainage ditches.

Accession number: TYT98[1046]<6>

Place of collection: London Bridge City, Tooley Street SE1 [Southwark]

Material: wood

Measurements: L 980 mm; blade W 160 mm

Gallery location: Case 12