Tapping the Barrel

This is another of our recent gifts of local metal detector finds.

As our title implies this is a tap for a barrel. It is made of some kind of base metal.

17th century barrel tap found in Market Lavington

This is something of a remarkable survival (we think). The tap is thought to date from some time in the 1600s so it is at least 400 years old.

Equally remarkable is that the tap still works. The key like top can be turned and it does indeed seal off the pipe.

How such an item comes to be found in a field could be a bit of a mystery but presumably a barrel had been taken out for workers to have a drink. We can only hope that the tap didn’t fall out to lose all the vital liquid!

Lovely item. Thanks, Norman.