Thread: What a find!

Ace find. You must be blessed by the carving gods.
With those sizes and shapes, what do you suppose he carved?
Fine relief on furniture?

Because the box has an owner's name and address on the inside I did a bit of Googling.
I found an entry on Wikipedia for a Birmingham photographer who did an apprenticeship with a church furniture woodcarver and stained glass window designer. He died in 1942. The guy I bought them from told me his father bought the tools when he was in Birmingham shortly after the war. Those dates fit. I am trying to find out from the seller if his father was the Western Australian artist/sculptor Howard Taylor. The name fits. The Wikipedia entry for Taylor has him in Birmingham studying art shortly after the war. The location fits. Unfortunately the seller is no longer responding to my emails so no confirmation as yet.
Even if this is all coincidence it as at least interesting trying to research their history.

What an outstanding, mysterious back story. I do hope there's some closure, some day.

My guess on the carving subject might not be too far off. The sizes and shapes of carving tools, as you know,
usually speak to the nature of the work.

They all look quite grubby. Is that just a patina with age or is there some humidity rust?

So I have had a response from the seller and yes his father was the WA artist/sculptor Howard Taylor.
I think they may have sat unused for some years which may explain the grubby/rusty state of them.

Wow what a find! Your research into the origin and subsequent movements is great. I hope you document all this and keep it with the tools so your future generations can see the history. If you throw a couple of packets of silica gel in each drawer, it will reduce additional rusting of the tools.

Claude