Ethnographic Arms & Armour - View Single Post

M ELEY · 24th August 2013, 01:55 AM

Hello Russell,
I think we are looking at a gaff here. If you can imagine this mounted on a pole with one of the spikes acting as the tang for the piece, you can see how it would resemble a boarding pike. Gaffs such as this have existed before colonial times and were used to pull in lines, secure the ropes (note the ring on your piece), pull smaller craft closer to the dock for disembarking, etc. Some types of gigs were used in fishing, as Fernando's resent accquisition will attest to (for gigging tuna or mackarel). One could easily be fanciful and say it 'could' have been used as a boarding pike for defence, but without definite proof, the use of gaffs like yours used as weapons remains speculative. Some of us naval collectors have debated this in the past, both here and on other maritime/naval sites. here's the thing about so-called "boarding weapons". In the scrap of battle, almost everything on the deck of a ship could and would be used to attack/defend oneself. Belay pins were a part of the ship, but they were commonly used for a ship's defense. Likewise, whaling harpoons, fire axes, grappling hooks, knotted ropes, and blubber knives all came into the fray when it came to fighting on deck.
Soooooo...a ship's gaff tool that theoretically might have seen action. I'd date it to late 18th to mid-19th century. A nice piece of nautical history!

24th August 2013, 01:55 AM	#2
M ELEY Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: NC, U.S.A. Posts: 2,138	Hello Russell, I think we are looking at a gaff here. If you can imagine this mounted on a pole with one of the spikes acting as the tang for the piece, you can see how it would resemble a boarding pike. Gaffs such as this have existed before colonial times and were used to pull in lines, secure the ropes (note the ring on your piece), pull smaller craft closer to the dock for disembarking, etc. Some types of gigs were used in fishing, as Fernando's resent accquisition will attest to (for gigging tuna or mackarel). One could easily be fanciful and say it 'could' have been used as a boarding pike for defence, but without definite proof, the use of gaffs like yours used as weapons remains speculative. Some of us naval collectors have debated this in the past, both here and on other maritime/naval sites. here's the thing about so-called "boarding weapons". In the scrap of battle, almost everything on the deck of a ship could and would be used to attack/defend oneself. Belay pins were a part of the ship, but they were commonly used for a ship's defense. Likewise, whaling harpoons, fire axes, grappling hooks, knotted ropes, and blubber knives all came into the fray when it came to fighting on deck. Soooooo...a ship's gaff tool that theoretically might have seen action. I'd date it to late 18th to mid-19th century. A nice piece of nautical history! Last edited by M ELEY; 24th August 2013 at 04:12 AM.