Monmouth Gate House Toasting Fork

19"L x 3"W

Brass. In great condition. Rotating prongs. Depicting an old pub in Wales.

The building was established as a house by 1812, when a women's friendly society, met in the building once a month. The women paid small amounts into a fund which they then withdrew in times of being unable to work due to childbirth, sickness, accidents or old age. The building, also known as The Gate House, is a public house located next to Monnow Bridge in Monmouth, Wales. The pub was known as the Barley Mow until it changed its name in 1993. It is the only public house in Monmouth located beside a river. The pub has a restaurant area, seated balcony and a function room to date.

Known as a toasting iron , Its fork end consists of three prongs, with the central prong curved to allow slices of bread, cheese or meat, and perhaps even slices of apple, to be toasted together.  When the toasting fork is not being used it could be hung up next to the fire by its suspension ring. People in the middling or upper levels of society used a toasting fork, sometimes called a toasting iron, which was a long-handled fork, usually between 16 and 24 inches in length, that could heat or toast food in front of an open fire.

19th Century

England