What went in this hole in the kitchen?

[DaveBrigg]

Close inspection of the fireplace beams for the two kitchens in our house (one was just for servants I think) has revealed four holes, each just over a centimetre in diameter.

The left hand arrow points to where there are two holes, one just below the other. The right hand is a single hole. Each is about 3 cm deep, although there is plaster at the bottom, so they may originally have gone deeper.

This is from the older and smaller kitchen, and is fairly central to the beam. The brickwork in the background is a Victorian addition. I assume that some sort of kitchen implement would have fitted into the holes, but can anyone be more precise?
Thanks

 

[alice]

Maybe it could be something simpler than some cooking utensil. Maybe they held dowels so that stuff could be hung over the fireplace to be dried (herbs, for instance). A pot holder or anything heavy would leave a larger hole, I would think.

alice

 

[middi]

The hole in the second picture and it's position in relation to the beam is very likely to have been a wall stud peg hole originally.

One has to remember that a lot of these timbers were either re-used from other buildings, or been subjected to later additions and alterations during their earlier life, therefore very difficult at times to attribute a particular carpenter's work to the purpose for which it was originally intended.

 

[DaveBrigg]

Thanks for the ideas. I hadn't thought about them being peg holes from earlier use of the timber. Our cellar ceiling joists have these, but in that case the holes are a little larger diameter and are only found in the middle of rebates, cut to take the joist or beam they were once attached to. There is no other evidence of the kitchen timbers being re-used, and the positioning of the central holes is almost identical on each. Too much of a coincidence?
If the holes were on the inner surface, they would obviously have held something over a fire, but anything hanging from a peg on the outer face would presumably be too far away from the fire to cook.

 

[alice]

You wouldn't want to hang stuff you want to dry (herbs/vegetables) or cure (sausages) directly in front of the fire, but out to the side a bit. The idea is to slowly dry without baking. But then, it doesn't have to be food that needs to be dried, either. Clothes, wash rags, etc would be hung or propped as close the fire as they could get without being charred or smoked.

Another idea. Could the holes have held the pins for some sort of decorative element or shelf/mantel bracket?

alice

 

[Penners]

I agree with Middi. The hole in the smaller picture looks definitely like a peg hole, so if the others are like that, they're probably the same.

Remember that we aren't the only generation to have re-used building components. In fact in the past, a lower level of general wealth probably made re-use even more common. So these beams could have been second-hand when they were installed, with the peg holes dating from an earlier use.

 

[NT]

I reckon it was a giant woodworm myself, produced by early insecticides that turned out to be mutagenic.


NT

 

[alice]

ooooh... that would make it a wormhole, or a shortcut through space and time....a pretty nifty accessory for any kitchen.

alice

 

[NT]

It sure would!

Well, it has travelled through time, from centuries ago to today.


NT

 

[DaveBrigg]

Thanks for all the suggestions. If a woodworm that big pops out, it'll be peeled and in the pan before it has a chance to do any more damage. The suggestion of re-used beams would fit with the house, because part of it is probably Norman, but the timber seems to be in a pretty good condition if it is really that old. According to the CO, the cellar beams are reused medieval, but the re-use is much more obvious.
There is no shortage of hanging space in the main kitchen - when the ceiling was plasterboarded the builder couldn't be bothered to remove the original iron hooks and so twisted them round instead. We found 27 of different sizes, as well as a dozen large square nails.