An example of a Newtown pattern billhook. The billhook is a traditional cutting tool used mainly in European agriculture, but also common throughout most of the world where it was introduced by European settlers or developed independently. The blade is usually made from a medium carbon steel in varying weights and lengths, with an increasingly strong curve towards the end. The blade is generally sharpened only on the inside of the curve, but double edged billhooks, or broom hooks, also have a rectangular secondary blade on the back. Image File history File links Summary A fine example of the tool known as a billhook. ...
A European is primarily a person who was born into one of the countries within the continent of Europe. ...
The steel cable of a colliery winding tower. ...
Typically the blade is 20 - 25 cm (8" - 10") long with a wooden handle (usually made from ash due to its strength and unique ability to deal with repeated impact) of 12 - 15 cm (6" - 8") which may be caulked or round, and usually fitted by a tang passing through the handle or with a socket that encloses it (although some had scales of hardwood or horn fitted - more common in other countries but often found on 'gentlemen's' or 'lady's' tools - and now often found on cheap imported hooks). The edge of the billhook is bevelled at a relatively obtuse angle in order to avoid binding in green wood. Some hooks, e.g. the Kent model, have a single bevelled blade, available in both right and left hand versions, others e.g the Machynlleth (Wales) have dished blades, or a pronounced thickened nose, e.g. the Monmouth pattern, the origins of which are now lost.
Perhaps best thought of as halfway between a knife and an axe, it is often used for cutting thick woody plants such as saplings and small branches and for "snedding" (stripping the shoots from a branch). In France and Italy it was widely used for pruning of grape vines. Snedding is the process of stripping the side shoots and buds from the length of a branch or shoot, usually of a tree or woody shrub. ...
The billhook's use as a cutting tool goes back to the Bronze Age and a few examples survive from this period (e.g found in the sea around Greece). Iron examples from the later Iron Age have been found in pre-roman settlements in several English counties as well as in France and Switzerland. It is the European equivalent of all large woodland utility knives such as machetes, parangs, khukris, etc. The Bronze Age is a period in a civilizations development when the most advanced metalworking has developed the techniques of smelting copper from natural outcroppings and alloys it to cast bronze. ...
Iron Age Axe found on Gotland This article is about the archaeological period known as the Iron Age, for the mythological Iron Age see Iron Age (mythology). ...
This does not cite its references or sources. ...
The parang is the Malay equivalent of the machete, typical vegetation in Malaysia is more woody than in South America and the parang is therefore optimised for a stronger chopping action with a heavier blade and a sweet spot further forward of the handle, the blade is also beveled more...
Khukri knife and sheath The khukri is a knife, the national weapon and forestry tool of Nepal. ...
The tool (being of an ancient design) has existed for so long it has developed a large variety of names in different parts of Britain including: Bill, Hedging bill, Hand bill, Hook bill, Billhook, Bagging hook, Brishing hook, and Broom hook. American English sometimes also refers to it as a "Fascine Knife".
Made on a small scale in village smithies and in larger industrial sites (e.g. Fussells of Mells) the billhook is still relatively common throughout most of western Europe. During the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries the larger manufacturers offered up to 200 or so different regional styles and shapes of blade, sometimes in a range of different sizes from 6" to 11" long in 1/2" steps. (The French firm of Talabot boasted in their 1930 catalogue that they held over 3000 different patterns in their archives)
Styles of billhook
Principles of design Billhooks would have once been made by the local smith to the user's specifications but now sizes and shapes are standardised. The handles are mostly rat-tail tang except the Yorkshire having such a long handle that a tang is just not practical - they have a socket instead. The smaller hooks have variations in the shape of the handle: round, oval and pistol grip. A blacksmith A blacksmith at work A blacksmith at work A blacksmiths fire Hot metal work from a blacksmith A blacksmith is a person who creates objects from iron or steel by forging the metal; i. ...
Since hygiene and cosmetic appearance are unimportant billhooks have never been commonly made using stainless steel and are almost universally made from ordinary steel of a moderate carbon content, high carbon steel is not often used since an extremely sharp and hard edge is unnecessary and a slightly lower carbon content makes the hook easier to sharpen in the field and gives the blade a little more springiness.
Billhooks have a relatively thick blade (much thicker than a machete for example) since they are typically used for cutting thick and woody vegetation. The nose is sometimes also thickened to bring the sweet spot further forward and optimise the chopping action even more. A sweet spot is a place, often numerical as opposed to physical, where a combination of factors suggest a particularly suitable solution. ...
The hooked front of the blade makes it easier to "catch" small branches when stripping them off larger branches and also makes chopping against a rounded object (such as a tree trunk) more effective.
A billhook may vary in shape depending from which part of the UK it originates; there are nine main types.
Northern and Midland Designs
Gilpin 1918 pattern billhook, thick nose with handle crudely replaced. - Leicester/Warwickshire:
Favoured by midlands style hedgers, is a one handed tool with a 6" handle and a 10" blade. It has a curved blade at the front and a shorter straight blade at the back, the front blade being used for general purpose and the back blade kept extremely sharp for delicate trimming, topping off stakes and other work which will not damage the blade. - Yorkshire:
Used by a small percentage of Midlands style hedgers, this is generally a two handed tool with a 14" handle and 10" blade, again it has the curved front and straight back blades, in some cases the handle can be up to 36" long. The disadvantage of this variety of tool is its weight. - Llandilo/Carmarthenshire:
Have a 9" handle and a 10" blade they lack a back blade but have a small notch at the top known as a hedge grip which allows hedgers to push pleachers and brash into place without using the hands. - Pontypool/Monmouthshire:
Have a 6" handle and a 10" blade but lack the back blade or the "hedge grip" of the Llandilo. - Knighton/Radnorshire:
With similar measurements to the Pontypool/Monmouthshire style, this style has the least curvature of any hook and is almost a straight blade. - Newtown/Montgomeryshire:
Has slightly more curvature than the Knighton. The top picture shows a Newtown pattern billhook. Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 600 pixel Image in higher resolution (2560 × 1920 pixel, file size: 665 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Devon pattern Billhook made by W.Gilpin in 1918, original handle has been crudely replaced. ...
Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 600 pixel Image in higher resolution (2560 × 1920 pixel, file size: 665 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Devon pattern Billhook made by W.Gilpin in 1918, original handle has been crudely replaced. ...
Leicester city centre, looking towards the Clock Tower Leicester (pronounced ) is the largest city and unitary authority in the English East Midlands. ...
A detailed map Stratford-upon-Avon Kenilworth Castle Warwickshire (pronounced // or //) is a landlocked non-metropolitan county in central England. ...
Look up Yorkshire in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...
Llandilo is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. ...
Carmarthenshire (Welsh: ) is a one of thirteen historic counties and a principal area in Wales. ...
Pontypool (Welsh: Pont-y-pŵl) is a town of approximately 36,000 people in the traditional county of Monmouthshire, southern Wales. ...
Monmouthshire (Welsh: ) is both a historic county and principal area in south-east Wales. ...
This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...
Radnorshire (Welsh: ) is one of thirteen historic counties and former administrative counties of Wales. ...
Newtown town centre Newtown (Welsh: ) is a town with a population of 10,541 (1993) lying on the River Severn in Mid Wales. ...
Montgomeryshire (Welsh: Sir Drefaldwyn) is an inland traditional county of Wales. ...
Southern designs The southern group of hedgers use hooks often designed for other woodland work beside hedging - all single edge they vary from moderately heavy to the very light. - Devon/Dorchester Half Turn:
Has a heavily weighted nose, a 6" handle and a 10" blade. - Bristol:
Slightly lighter than the Devon with a bulge in the middle which accentuates the curve further up the hook, it has the same measurements as the Devonshire. - West Country:
Lighter again than the Bristol with its much more traditional shape and identical measurements to the Devonshire. - Spar hook:
Very light with a 6" handle and an 6" or 7" blade, it could be used for snedding of felled limbs, but its main use is the splitting of spars (from hazel) for use by thatchers - Kent:
Also known as bagging hook or brishing hook. “Devonshire†redirects here. ...
The main road through Dorchester Dorchester is a market town in south west Dorset, England, situated on the River Frome and A35 road 20 miles west of Poole and five miles north of Weymouth. ...
This article is about the English city. ...
The West Country is an informal term for the area of south-western England roughly corresponding to the modern South West England government region. ...
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coat of Arms of Kent For other uses, see Kent (disambiguation). ...
Image File history File links Size of this preview: 539 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (691 × 768 pixel, file size: 35 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Handbills the property of me (Peotrovitch) and photograph by me. ...
Image File history File links Size of this preview: 539 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (691 × 768 pixel, file size: 35 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Handbills the property of me (Peotrovitch) and photograph by me. ...
Other hooks - Block hooks: with a straight or slightly convex cutting edge, they were often used in urban envonments for cutting against a wooden block (similar to the back blade of a broom hook, used for trimming the head of a birch besom to length). Often found with a small hook at on the back of the blade - useful to pull the wood towards the user. Dutch hooks commonly have a straight blade and are shown in rennaissance paintings of carpenter's shops (where they would most probably have been used for rough shaping of timber - c.f. use of the side axe)
A variety of other hooks were also made by most edge tool makers (including pea and bean hooks, gorse or furze hooks, trimming hooks, staff hooks, slashers, pruning hooks) that are closely related to the billhook, although they differ in shape, width or thickness of blade, length of handle etc.
Modern usage Billhooks are currently in common use by thatchers, coppicers, hurdle makers, charcoal burners and often by other traditional craftsmen, farmers and woodsmen. It is also the primary tool for Hedgelayers. Thatching is the art or craft of covering a roof with vegetative materials such as straw, reed or sedge. ...
Coppicing is a traditional method of woodland management, by which young tree stems are cut down to a foot or less from ground level. ...
Hurdles are a form of rural crafts. ...
Charcoal is the blackish residue consisting of impure carbon obtained by removing water and other volatile constituents from animal and vegetation substances. ...
In Slavonic languages, a hedge is a zhivy plod, or a living fence. It is for this purpose that we see hedging traditionally used in the United Kingdom. ...
Use as a weapon In the medieval period the billhook inspired a military weapon also known as a bill / billhook, similar to the halberd. It consisted of a pole with bill-like blade mounted below a spearhead with spikes added to the back of the blade to increase the versatilty of the weapon against horsemen and armour. Some good examples can be seen in the museum at York. A "pruning bill" is described as the weapon used in the Pierre Rivière parricide case of 1835. Also used for cutting brushwood for making fascines and gabions, and thus an issued tool in some armed forces (see fascine knife). Originally for creating cannon emplacements, later used by machine gun units. Also issued to the pioneer corps of most regiments. Pole weapons and Mortuary Swords in the Great Hall of Edinburgh Castle. ...
This article or section cites very few or no references or sources. ...
The fascine knife was a sidearm issued to 19th century light infantry and artillery. ...
Names for billhook in other languages Serpe, Serpette, Croissant, Vousge, Poudo (FR), Haumesser, Hippe, Gertel, Praxe (also Braxe) (DE), Roncola, Pennato, Mannaia (IT), Haakbejl (Hackbeil ??), Snoeimes, Hakmes, Kapmes (NL), Tajamata (ES), Natagama (JP), Vesuri (FI), Metszõkés (HU), Golok (Indonesia), Fascine Knife (USA), Katte (CY), Dah (Burma), Faskinkniv (SW), Koser, Kostur (BG), Kladephtéri, Kladeuterion, Drépanon (GR), Cosor, Cosoras (R), Choser, Cosser, Chosor, Kosir, (Croatia/Serbia), Mossuranto (Venice), Hippe, Héip, Häpp, Heep, Handbeil (LB).
External links - http://www.billhooks.co.uk - the home page of 'A Load of Old Billhooks' - includes information on French billhooks
- http://www.dartfordarchive.org.uk/early_history - Dartford Town Archive, includes a picture of the Iron Age "Hulbury Billhook" - this type of tool is still found today in Morocco
- http://perso.orange.fr/forges-moulins/CatalogueP14.htm - old (1920's) catalogue of the Leborgne company
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