The Ebbsfleet Plane

[Andy Kev.]

Could it have been a highly specialised plane for use by a specific tradesman? For instance with a blade curved to match the sole, could it have perhaps been used by somebody who made round handles e.g. broom handles?

The wide mouth is a bit more puzzling. The need to observe the work being done, perhaps?

 

[rxh]

I've always found early history from very interesting, this is even more interesting as it is actually a tool that was used by an actual craftsman circa 1500 years ago! It's a shame nothing more can really be gleaned from the tool itself to say what it was actually used for, could be for any number of things such as making boar hunting spear shafts as well as arrows, or perhaps removing the bark from sticks because of the large mouth allows the bark to eject easily.

I know it's extremely difficult to even remotely guess what timber the original is made from in that photo, but if I can hazard a guess on the wood, perhaps it's Elm? It's sometimes known to last a ridiculous amount of time in a very wet environment which is why they used it for water pipes.

I've seen a copy of the archeologists' description of this plane, and although they aren't certain, they suggest that it could be made of boxwood or, more likely, some sort of fruitwood. They also speculate that it could have been used for spears as well as arrows and say that the shaping at the rear makes it suitable for pulling along the work.

If anyone wants the full research report, it's available here

https://www.wessexarch.co.uk/our-work/s ... eet-valley

in volume 4.

Thanks for the link Andy and thanks to everyone for your comments. I have tried pulling as well as pushing and I found that pushing works much better. When pulling, the hand gets in the way of the shavings and makes ejecting them with a finger a slower operation as it is necessary to shift the grip on the plane before doing so. It is also harder to see what you are doing. I think the groove is a very useful feature when working fast - I found it best to roll the shaft to and fro on the bench with my left hand while planing with my right hand.

Another use that has been suggested for the plane is making fishing rods.

 

[gloerke]

Thanks for the info on this interesting early medieval plane. As a re-enactor I make medieval replica planes and other tools as well (and use them). I wondered if you have some more photos of the original plane, or know if the data on the plabe are already published (archeological report or scientific journal or so).

Marijn, St. Thomasguild

 

[AndyT]

Thanks for the info on this interesting early medieval plane. As a re-enactor I make medieval replica planes and other tools as well (and use them). I wondered if you have some more photos of the original plane, or know if the data on the plabe are already published (archeological report or scientific journal or so).

Marijn, St. Thomasguild

The book I linked to -
https://www.wessexarch.co.uk/our-work/s ... eet-valley = has five photos, a set of measured drawings and about a page of description. I can't post it on here as it's copyright material, sorry.

This WorldCat entry should show you if there is a library copy local to you - just enter your location in the box.

https://www.worldcat.org/title/settling ... ef_results

 

[gloerke]

the particular webpage of wessexarch is down, unfortunately. On the positive side, the report at oxbow books is heavily reduced in price, so I got a copy (1 photo, 1 drawing and 2 pages description) .