A Useful Tool

Did my face echo my doubts when my aunt handed over the two large, rusted and dirty rings?

"They were my Grandfather's," she explained, "Parts of a maul."

In the back of my mind, I had a vague idea,  but when seeing a real one in a forestry museum a little later, I could see how the rings worked. A large cylindrical, wooden head had a ring around each end to stop the wood from splitting when the tool was hit hard against another surface.

Internet searches told me that a maul was used by circuses to hammer tent pegs into the ground. I think Ephraim was more likely to have used it for splitting timber and for fencing. It must have had a myriad of uses in the bush.

I cannot imagine how difficult it was to use such a tool. There certainly would have been no need to go to the gym at the end of the day. In fact, I have used the rings as weights. 

Texture marks spill the secret that they have been home made. A depression would have been made into sandy soil and a tin placed in the centre. Hot metal poured into the resulting circular well would have been then left to cool. 

Once any sharp edges were beaten flat, they would have been reheated before hammering into position on the maul.

I have had these a while now. They have been cleaned and de-rusted. I have no use for a large wooden maul but they are wonderful to place on slippery fabric to stop it sliding away when I am cutting out a pattern.