Name/Title
Double bodied moulding plane.Entry/Object ID
2010.057.234Description
A wooden moulding plane with two bodies connected by wooden screws. One body will produce a rebate, the other an ogee. A user made spacer up to 1 1/2 inches thick located on two dowels can be placed between the bodies to vary the overall width of the moulding. (2010.057.234)Use
The plane produced a variable width decorative moulding that could be used for door and window frames, or for furniture. Commonly the moulding would be cut on the edge of a board and then cut off to get any desired thickness. The elaboration of a user made spacer suggests that it would be used to produce multiple lengths of a particular moulding. A one-off would be simpler to produce with two single bodies planes. The user would likely be a finishing carpenter or a furniture maker.Context
That this plane could be produced by a toolmaker for sale from stock, reflects the rise of a middle class that could afford to have such decorative work done . This work would soon come to be done on a routing or moulding machine, so represents the early phase of the industrial revolution when mass production could produce specialist tools affordable by local craftsmen.
