Description (Inscription)
Two letters carved on wooden shaft, either 'I M' or 'W I'. Lines scratched into metal collar, possibly forming the letter 'W'.
Event Date
Author: Stephanie Chinneck

Description (Physical description)
Agricultural tool. Shovel with iron, arrow-shaped head. Wooden shaft and D-shaped handle.
Event Date 23/8/2018
Author: Imogen Gunn (admin)

Description (Physical description)
Hodding spade or sharp shovel, consisting of iron sharply pointed head with stepped shoulders with a long socket or collar; attached to cylindrical shaft with D shaped handle. The shoulders extend from the head into two seperate pieces which are slightly open at the top, held closed by two rivets, opening with soil from use. Two letters carved on shaft, either 'I M' or 'W I'.
Event Date 10/1/2025
Author: Stephanie Chinneck

Context (Amendments / updates)
A note was found with TEMP.00544-00550, newly bagged and tied to TEMP.00551, with the word 'Wales'. It is possible that these items have been identified as coming from Wales, it is also possible that this note has ended up with these objects but does not relate to them. A second note was found with TEMP.00544-00568, newly bagged and tied to TEMP.00547, with '?Fens Unprovenanced' and so the geographic areas covering 'The Fens' has also been added to the place and production fields.
Event Date 10/1/2025
Author: Stephanie Chinneck

Context (Production / use)
From Enid Porter (1969), 'Fenland Peat', in Studies in Folk Life: Essays in honour of Iorwerth C Peate. 'The surface of the ground had to first be cleared by means of a spade with a heart-shaped blade called variously a sharp-shovel, hodding-spade, frog-mouthed or frog-nosed shovel.' and also 'The heart-shaped hodding spade of the turf cutter was used to pare down the side of the dyke, used by a man who stood on the top and worked the spade in a thrust-down, heave-up motion which left the sides as smooth as planed boards' see also Fig 2 c
Event Date 10/1/2025
Author: Stephanie Chinneck

Context (Analysis)
A similar example of this spade can be found in Ely Museum.
Event Date 10/1/2025
Author: Stephanie Chinneck

Conservation (Freezing)
CON.2025.6135 | Freezing
Event Date 20/1/2025
Author: Kirsty Kernohan