C005 - Collector's item: a most unusual leather walking stick.
Length 36 inches (92 cm)
When I first saw this stick lurking in an antique shop in Shropshire I assumed it was a cane or wooden stick which had been bound in leather. Closer inspection revealed it to be something I had previously heard of but never seen in the flesh, a real leather cane.
This is made by bending a thin steel rod into the shape of a walking stick, then threading discs of thick leather onto it, building up the tapered shape. This gets a bit tricky round the bend of the handle; the discs here have to be made wedge-shaped to follow the curve.
Here you can see a couple of sections of the shank on the left.
On the right is the tip, which is fitted with a slender brass ferrule. The
steel rod extends through the ferrule to make contact with the ground. This
would protect the ferrule itself from wear, and I would assume the ferrule to
be original. You certainly wouldn't want to replace it too often!
I have removed some minor splashes of paint(!), treated it with leather reviver and polished it up a bit.
Now a few words about the nature of this stick...
The steel rod which forms the backbone makes the stick quite heavy, despite its slim appearance. The layers of leather washers provide no rigidity, and the steel rod inside is quite flexible. This means the stick really provides no support at all; it was clearly not meant to be a walking aid. If you lean on it, it will bend (this is no problem, though - it's just as easy to straighten it again over your knee).
I would say this sort of stick was intended to be a novel fashion accessory and defensive weapon. I have heard it said that such sticks were favoured by surgeons in the days before anaesthetics were in common use. Apparently it provided something for the patient to bite on during the operation. Of course, this may be just another old stickmaker's tale... I don't see any obvious teeth-marks on this one!
The unusual construction of this stick means that shortening it would not be a good idea. It should be regarded as a collectable piece rather than a practical walking stick.
My guess is that it dates from the late 19th to early 20th century - but again, I am not an expert.
SOLD