Sheller, Bean

Object Name:

Sheller, Bean

Object ID:

1969.052.22

Date:

1775-1800

Description:

Bean sheller. Wood, unidentified hard and soft. Medium-tan. Rectangular body section, 12" long, ~8" high, 9.6" wide. Vertical end, 1" wide, with two square tenons that pass through sides. Tenons 1" wide x 0.9" high. Scribe marks on sides of body where tenons stick through. Small pegs on top and bottom surface to hold tenons. Pegs protrude from surfaces slightly. Inclined partition, ~0.75" thick, 7.5" long (top surface) at very outside of box. Held in a slot cut into sides. Single dovetailed surface on bottom of this partition. Two wooden pegs per side holding it in place. Top end of partition flush with vertical end of box. Bottom end of partition stops short of reaching bottom surface of box. ~3.5" wide gap at bottom. Turned wood cylinder that passes through gap from one side to other. Cylinder 2.1" diameter. This diameter runs from one side to other at opening. Cylinder turned down to a diameter of 1.7" where it passes through one side, terminating with flush end. Opposite end 4.1" long, 1.1" of it inside wall of box. Cylinder extends 1.3" to a flat surface. At that point, it becomes a tenon, 0.4" thick x 1.7" long. Ends of tenon are chamfered. Tenon fits into turned handle, 11.3" long. Square center section, ~3.8" long. Mortise near bottom of that square section. Square section transitions into short tapered shaft with slightly rounded end. In opposite direction, square section tapers to round shaft, 6.4" long with rounded end. Slight tapered neck just above square section. It then has slight bulge terminated by fine incised line. A handle, 5" long in that area. Handle diameter 0.8". Straight cylinder with rounded end. Near junction with lever arm, handle tapers to 0.5" diameter and fits into hole that passes through lever arm. End of handle slightly recessed in that hole. Wooden peg holding handle in place. Wooden peg holding lever arm to cylinder and passes through tenon of cylinder. Small area of paint on lever arm, with decorative arms associated with turned elements. Cylinder inside box area and the opening where cylinder rotates between sides of box are two horizontal rows of diamond cross-section teeth, ~0.75" long. Teeth in vertical alignment. Gap between them, ~0.5" wide. Cylinder, 10 teeth in a staggered row, roughly diamond-shaped in cross section that passes between fixed teeth on vertical plate. Six rows of teeth around the rotating cylinder, equally spaced. All of rows staggered, ~35 degrees of rotation from one edge of cylinder to opposite edge. There extends two rectangular legs, 18.5" long, 2" high, 1" thick, from edge of box,. Cross arm, 1.2" from end, 1.1" thick, with tenon on it. Tenon horizontal and passes through both arms. Tenon 0.95" wide, 0.55" high. Tenons pegged from top surface of arms. Slight gouge on inside surface of one arm. Small crack at end of this arm. Teeth ~1.6" long, square in cross section of shaft from which they cut, ~0.22". One tooth on cylinder, 0.5" wide x 0.25" thick. Sharp blade side ~0.6" long. Very end of tooth, curved in shape, and fits into a roughly square hole in turned cylinder. Scribe marks around cylinder that line up with teeth. One tooth missing. Ends of teeth all about same shape, but either through cutting and/or wear, some difference. One tooth triangular as opposed to diamond-shaped in its cross section. Scribe marks in some different areas on device for alignment of mortises and tenons. No scribe marks seen to help align the stagger of the teeth on rotating cylinder.

Material:

Wood

Dimensions:

H-8 W-16.2 L-30.5 inches Weight-119.55 oz

Provenance:

Objects and manuscripts from the Nims and Knight families of Roxbury and the Rugg family of Sullivan, given by a descendant, Helen E. (Mrs. Charles B.) Knight of Marlborough, NH.

Credit Line:

Gift of Helen E. Knight

People:

Knight, Helen E. (1895-1985), Knight, Charles B. (1892-1968)

Subjects:

Beans, Farm equipment