Images(4)

Front-Bent Carving Gouge

Date1775-1825

OriginEngland

MediumIron, steel, and wood

DimensionsOverall: 11/16 × 13/16 × 9 11/16 in (1.8 × 2 × 24.6cm)

Credit LineGift of Mr. Frank McGregor Smith.

Object number1986-268,83

DescriptionApproximate "E" sweep (1870 Sheffield List), front bent or spoon gouge with octagonal bolster on "swell and taper" beech handle. Either never sharpened or ground back.Label TextEvery-day woodwork sometimes needed a touch of sculpted embellishment, which required smaller, specialized tools. Carving chisels came in a wide array of shapes and sizes; this one is part of a larger set brought to America in 1819.Mark(s)A crowned "C S" is struck on the shank.ProvenanceFrom the George W. Cartwright II tool chest (1986-268,1). He immigrated from London to Ossining, New York in 1819. Cartwright's fitted tool chest contained chisels, planes, sharpening stones, and implements for marking, measuring, carving, and veneering. Many had been made before Cartwright was born, indicating that he probably inherited the tools or bought them secondhand. A substantial number of these tools remain with the chest today.