Fireplace crane

1750-1825

Measurements

23-3/8 in x 26-1/4 in x 1 in

Materials

Iron

Credit Line

Historic Odessa Foundation, gift of Leonard J. Hampson

Accession Number

2026.72

Condition Notes

The iron is pitted and oxidized

Provenance

In a 1965 memo, Odessa curator Horace L. Hotchkiss Jr. states that the crane came “from an old house on High St., Odessa.”

The crane was originally assigned the accession number 1965.122 when it was given for the collection in 1969.  The new number was assigned when ownership was transferred from Winterthur to Historic Odessa in 2026.

Comments

The wrought iron fireplace crane (also known as a chimney- or pot crane) has an upright element, octagonal in cross-section, with a rounded finial-like termination at the top and a rounded foot at the base.  A horizontal bar to hold pots has an upturned end and is tenoned into the upright.  A diagonal brace supporting the bar is twisted for decoration.

This crane was likely made originally to be connected to an iron strap, bent to a 90-degree angle at the top and bottom with holes to capture the top and bottom of the upright. The strap was attached firmly to the inside of the fireplace opening.