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Culture:American
Title:hatchel; hetchel
Date Made:1750-1875
Type:Tool - Textile Working
Materials:wood; metal
Place Made:United States
Measurements:overall: 6 1/4 in x 6 1/2 in x 24 in; 15.9 cm x 16.5 cm x 61 cm
Accession Number:  HD 1411.1
Credit Line:Gift of Harold E. Clapp
Museum Collection:  Historic Deerfield
© Historic Deerfield

Description:
Hatchels, also known as hetchels, were used to comb flax fibers in preparation for spinning and weaving. The name comes from a late 15th-century English word (hackle) meaning to prick or pierce. These textile processing tools are constructed using a block of wood which holds rigid metal nails. The fibres are combed through these spikes, separating the shorter (tow) fibers from the longer ones desired for spinning into yarns for weaving linen. This example features square, hand-forged nails that were inserted into round holes pre-made (drilled or burned) into the hardwood base, an inconsistency which would help anchor the metal. The density of the metal nail arrangement suggests a medium level of combing. As many as five hatchels of increasingly finely spaced teeth could be used to refine the flax before spinning. Unsigned/unmarked.

Link to share this object record:
https://museums.fivecolleges.edu/detail.php?t=objects&type=ext&id_number=HD+1411.1

Research on objects in the collections, including provenance, is ongoing and may be incomplete. If you have additional information or would like to learn more about a particular object, please email fc-museums-web@fivecolleges.edu.

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