RARE MID-LATE 19TH CENTURY AME RI CAN ANTIQUE HAND FORGED IRON, AGGRESSIVELY SPIKED WEANING COW CALF HEAD GUARD/HELMET/MASK, W/ORIGINAL. [No original, attached leather holding straps were found with piece]. 19th century early New England antique hand forged cow breeding accessories & dairy/beef production tools. Overall: 17 12" Height x 5 14" Depth x 15 12 x Width. Offered is this absolutely fantastic (which may be a slight understatement) mid-late 19th century Ame ri can antique hand forged iron, spiked cow calf weaning helmet or mask in absolutely original,'as-found' antique condition, featuring naturally pitted, oxidized and dry surfaces.
It's comprised of hand forged iron flat stock and anvil hammered and tapered iron spikes or nails, attached to the iron frame, to be worn around the head of a baby calf to discourage it from continuing to nurse its mother's udder, thus taking away much needed available milk and keeping the mother cow still in maternity/post-birth, nursery mode. Once the baby calf was finally successfully weaned from its mother, the adult female cow could then prepare to be mated with once again to produce more offspring or to simply begin producing milk to be collected daily for dairy products and subsequent human consumption. Wonderful form and with a near medieval conceptual attitude, this macabre piece was once omnipresent on early New England farms.
Good to Very Good overall antique condition. The item "RARE 19TH C AMERICAN ANTIQUE HAND FORGED IRON SPIKED WEANING COW CALF HEAD GUARD" is in sale since Saturday, April 4, 2020.
This item is in the category "Collectibles\Metalware\Other Collectible Metalware". The seller is "modsanctuary" and is located in Milford, New Hampshire. This item can be shipped worldwide.