Candle snuffer????

[axtyr]

Hi there.

Would anyone know what this is? My wife thought it might be a candle snuffer. It was found next to what remains of an old pub from the goldfields. I found it at about 16" deep with my SD2000 and a Commander 8" coil.

It is made of copper, about 2" long and at the wide end it is about 1 1/4" wide. It has what looks like a little right angle handle attached to it.

 

[gcause]

Great find, definitely a candle snuffer, you can tell by the knop at the top and the carry handle, probably 18th-19th century, it is very similar to the one at the bottom of this page from the British museum:

http://finds.org.uk/database/search/results/manufacture/1/objectType/CANDLE+SNUFFER

The one in the museum was cast as a solid piece but yours is in three pieces indicating it was soldered together.

It is more likely to be this one as the solder has split which is why it is in pieces:

http://finds.org.uk/database/artefacts/record/id/562348

Hope this helps.

 

[casper]

a good call

 

[Nugget]

What's a candle snuffer? I briefly checked out the links gcause posted but am still unsure about what it was actually used for.

 

[Greglz86]

Do you use it to put out candles?

 

[the duck]

A candle snuffer was used to put out candles usually smaller than this this must have been if it is one for candles mounted high

 

[Mackka]

Still used in many churches today and they are often found on long wooden rods to snuff out or extinguish the candle. Take away the oxygen and no more flame.
Cheers
Mackka

 

[gcause]

Its for putting out the candles rather than burning your fingers or blowing them out. You find them in churches where they have a lot of candles setup in rows. That model doesn't have an extended pole handle, that little hook is the handle. Its a good sign your in an old town site.

 

[axtyr]

Thanks for the photos gcause. As usual my wife is right.

It would have been a 2 piece snuffer with the ball soldered onto the end. The smaller conical piece has broken away from the main larger piece. As it was flattened out it would have broken much easier.