Gardening finds

Lotus-eater

I've found lots of lovely looking, what I presume are ink bottles, lots of animal bones, tonnes of glass pieces, lots of pottery.
Where I live now, lots of clay pipe pieces. Bits of metal slag, there must have been some sort of metal smelting business here (roman I think)
As someone else said, some lovely old marbles, its these and the clay pipe bits that give me the best pleasure finding them, it has a sense of personal history about the place.

dannie

Thanks for all the replies. Yes, I’ve found lots of china, pottery and glass pieces. Some items found have also been reused around the garden. A toy soldier found is plastic and throwing a hand grenade. It makes me wonder whether these “garden finds” were lost or deliberately buried? Glass marbles also found are modern although some are much smaller and look like stone. As for shards of glass discovered around the base of my hedge,thought they were to keep out (animal?) intruders. Animal bones may be domesticated or farm? Unsure what you mean by “night soil” and “fly buttons”?

Has anybody found anything worth much money?

Suzy_M

"Unsure what you mean by “night soil” and “fly buttons”?

Night soil - the solid contents of chamber pots and buckets from outside loos. Used to be collected on a cart then spread on local farmland.

Fly buttons - from men fumbling around trying to use dark cold outside loos, especially if they were in a hurry after they've visited the many hostelries there used to be in the local towns. (Though all sorts of other items used to get lost in the buckets too.)

No I'm not taking the urine - that was collected in barrels for the local leather tanneries.

dannie

Suzy M,thanks for clarifying things - interesting historically.
Harriet,thanks for your reply.

Anymore "gardening finds"?
Have you ever researched these to identify them?

Davesnave

My ink bottles are like these:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/6-Different-Antique-Victorian-Inks_W0QQitemZ290283757557QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_Collectables_Bottle_Pots_ET?hash=item290283757557&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1294%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1318

Lotus-eater

Davesnave wrote: »

My ink bottles are like these:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/6-Different-Antique-Victorian-Inks_W0QQitemZ290283757557QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_Collectables_Bottle_Pots_ET?hash=item290283757557&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1294%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1318

Mine are similar to those as well. Not worth much then

dannie

Thanks, had a look at these ink bottles. I see that they are from the Victorian era (1837-1901|) which is the same period as my found brass weight. So,the date of construction of a house etc. will therefore determine what may be later unearthed.

Has anybody found anything worth more money than these ink bottles?
Or,anything older than this period in history?

dannie

Been meaning to identify all my gardening finds as an interesting project so was wondering whether anybody could say what animal bone this is?



The one on the left is about 10cm length and 3.5cm breadth (bone end). The other on the right (do not know if it is the missing piece from the bone on the left) is also 3.5cm breadth. Thanks.

£$&*"($£&(

dannie wrote: »

Been meaning to identify all my gardening finds as an interesting project so was wondering whether anybody could say what animal bone this is?

Probably cow or horse.

ginnyknit

I have often dug up marble cylinders about 8 inches long, we back onto a cemetery house and it has a garden attached which I guess they grew bedding plants in long ago. So I presume when they built these houses in the 60's they spread the soil out and the stonemasons rubbish went with it