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Dating a Nail.

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  • 11-12-2022 3:28pm
    #1
    Adrienne Squeaking Furnace
    Posts: 0 ✭ Adrienne Squeaking Furnace


    Hi all,

    Is it possible to put an approximate date on this nail? If indeed it is an nail, as it might be part of a ceramic item/structure that has disintegrated.

    Thanks

    1670768391091.jpg
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    1670768391104.jpg




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    #2
    AMKC
    Registered Users Posts: 16,006 ✭✭✭✭AMKC
    Ms


    I seen dating a nail and I was like wth.


    Wrong thread maybe.

    I am sure there is some way to date it alright but I do not know it. Google it might help you.

    Live long and Prosper

    Peace and long life.



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    #3
    Adrienne Squeaking Furnace
    Posts: 0 ✭ Adrienne Squeaking Furnace


    https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119983692#Comment_119983692

    🤣 Yeah I get ya, when I was typing it up i thought it could be misread as "Dating a Niall" in After Hours or Personal Relationships.😂



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    #4
    ohnonotgmail
    Registered Users Posts: 40,413 ✭✭✭✭ohnonotgmail


    This any good to you?

    https://metaldetectingtips.com/dating-nails-metal-detecting/#:~:text=But%20how%20do%20you%20date,from%20the%201900s%20to%20present.




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    #5
    Adrienne Squeaking Furnace
    Posts: 0 ✭ Adrienne Squeaking Furnace


    Thanks for that, yes I was looking at that but not conclusive for me, so I thought some of the folk on here might have first hand experience of dating nails, or dating "Nialls" for that matter 😁



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    #6
    slowburner
    Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators Posts: 5,220 Mod ✭✭✭✭slowburner


    There is no definitive dating typology for nails in this country that I am aware of.

    I would not pay much attention to the 'metal detecting tips' above either. Wrought iron nails (more commonly referred to as blacksmith's nails) were in everyday use here over 100 years later than they should be - according to that guide.

    Mass produced nails are a generally a product of the C19th but blacksmith's nails were still made, and used right up to the C20th. They are still made on demand for restoration projects and are considered by many to be a vastly superior product with better holding power, and resistance to corrosion.

    It is difficult to see much detail in the photos. It is almost certainly a nail, it is a hand-made nail, and it could be Medieval but it could also be Post-Medieval.

    Nails are not really suitable indicators of date. It's all about the context.



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    #7
    Adrienne Squeaking Furnace
    Posts: 0 ✭ Adrienne Squeaking Furnace


    Hi Slowburner, that’s very helpful information.

    The context is a surface find following storms in a dune system in the same immediate area as a good number of pieces of bullet shrapnel. (See my post in Military).

    However the same area has neolithic/medieval middens the contents of which have been scattered across the area.

    I was hoping that the nail could be associated with the bullets to help date them, but the nail is likely from a much earlier period. Thanks again.



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