Motiv větévky vinné révy (?) na zemědělském nářadí

The interesting motif of a vine spray appears both on medieval tools and on items in ethnographic collections from the late 19th and the early 20th centuries. The motif on a coulter and a hoe from ethnographic collections resembles a decorative element on a hoe from the deserted village of Konůvky from the 14th or early 15th century. An axe from Hradišťko, near Davle, features similar ornamentation. Did it serve as deliberate, functional, roughening of the surface (to make soil fall off more easily), was it a manufacturer's mark, or a and decoration pure and simple? From the Middle Ages onwards, blacksmiths provided simple ornamentation for the larger metal parts of tools, with no loss of quality or in ease of use. Such marks were easy to create, for example, by stamping when re-heating a tool at the forge. This simple decorative element could hardly be considered a manufacturer's mark, although every blacksmith probably had a favourite motif that he used frequently. Each product was its own hallmark and an original piece, and the manufacturer devoted a great deal of time and skill to it. Beyond doubt, a small ornament created in the final phase of the manufacture crowned the work. The connection with the age-long natural human desire to decorate practical things in the course of their manufacture is more than obvious.