Roland-designs , Virginie's blog.

"Never lose an opportunity of seeing anything beautiful, for beauty is God's handwriting." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Monday 15 December 2014

Antique Norwegian mangle board.

Mangle board
 
My husband and I try to surprise each other each Christmas with interesting and unusual antiques, and as tradition goes, we always exchange gift early.

This year he came home with a few novel items including another winding clock, and a very old Norwegian mangle board.

Despite the fact that the flat iron was invented in the middle ages, many housewives in Northern Europe still used a mangle board for ‘flattening’ clothes. 

 
Using a mangle board.... date unkown, Germany ?

 The mangle board was used to smooth out clothes or household linens by pressing while slightly damp  between the  board and a rolling pin.

In days-gone-by many a young man would have spent his free hours carving a mangle board for his bride to be, often adding hers/ their initials on the sides.

Our mangle board is decorated with rosettes, and a carved horse handle. The handle was  removable, but a previous owner nailed it in place. It is in good condition for its age, but at one point someone screwed two brackets underneath it and sadly one of them has a damaged screw which I’m at loss as to how to remove it.

If anyone has any tips on how to remove damaged screws from antique wood I would be very grateful.

Carved rosettes. The wood is old and dark, and has some redish and greenish tints.

Antique Norwegian mangle board

Details

Note the woodworm holes....
 
Detail of the horses' face



2 comments:

  1. That is beautiful! I'd never heard of this so I loved reading the history behind it.

    ReplyDelete