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This tool was used to strip the bark of felled trees. The bark was used to extract tannin for the treatment of leather.
Nothing is known of the origin of this barking iron. It was used for stripping bark from branches of felled trees in order to obtain tannin for treating leather. It has a wooden handle and a heart-shaped iron blade which was used to lever the bark from the branches. It was donated to the Museum by the Woodworking Department at the University of Reading.

1 barking iron: metal; wood

Wood, Metal, iron