Hello everyone

I have an occasional hobby of buying cheap old hones on ebay. I've got lucky with some good stones, and I've bought some absolute rubbish. It's a fairly harmless hobby (hey, some people go out and get drunk - I buy old stones!) and there's a bit of a thrill when I clean the grime off my latest buy and see if I've got a good 'un.

So anyway, I bought this the other day. Looked good in the pictures - nice smooth surface, a few scratches that will lap out, a hint of saw marks on the edges. Very interesting.

Name: Vintage sharpening stone 2.jpg Views: 258 Size: 180.7 KB

When it arrived, the first thing I noticed was it was really heavy. Must be a very dense stone, I think. I tapped it out of the box and gave it a quick rub with sandpaper.

And it isn't a stone. It's a piece of iron. Solid iron. About 4" x 2" x 1".

So, here's a £4.99 gamble that didn't pay off, but I'm curious now. It looks like a hone. It's in a box like a hone (no lid). But what is it? Did anyone ever use a block of iron to sharpen things? Is it something else, and did it have a particular use as a tool?

So I thought I'd see if the collected wisdom here can offer any suggestions. If anyone has any ideas I'd be really grateful. If nothing else I've got myself an industrial size paperweight...

Many thanks indeed

Weasel