Be the first to guess what the pictured item is by leaving a comment below. If you have your own whatsit, our editors may include it in a future post. Please send an email to editor@kovels.com and attach a clear picture, the size and any markings. Hopefully, we will be able to identify it for our readers!

Approximately 11 1/2 inches long.

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Hannam’s Auctioneers Ltd.

28 responses to “It’s #whatsitwednesday!”

  1. Kovels says:

    Answer from Kovels: Great guesses everyone! This is a 19th-century Weir’s patent Zig-Zag compound lever corkscrew by Healey and Sons.

  2. Suep says:

    It’s a corkscrew.

  3. Mzgti2u says:

    An accordion corkscrew to open wine bottles?

  4. casscramer says:

    Cork screw open / wine bottle opener

  5. bertram00 says:

    It is an antique “Concertina” corkscrew British patent 12804 dated Sept 25, 1884 designed/invented by Arthur Marshall Weir and manufactured by J. Heeley and Sons.

  6. Greyforest says:

    Looks like a corkscrew

  7. ponderosa says:

    Could be a manual bung puller. Older beer kegs had a wood plug called a bung, it covered hole that the keg was filled through. When used keg came back to the brewery, the bung was pulled , the keg washed, refilled, and a new bung was driven into the keg. I have only seen powered bung pullers.

  8. DOBIE66 says:

    Leaver Corkscrew

  9. garioki says:

    A concertina corkscrew from 1884.

  10. dbarbagallo says:

    Antique Corkscrew

  11. Deltablues says:

    To carry blocks of ice to the house from your wagon/truck?

  12. PPiman says:

    Heeley Lazy Tongs Corkscrew
    A very good example of Marshall
    Wier’s 1884 concertina corkscrew
    manufactured by James Heeley &
    Sons.

  13. sk8trgrrl says:

    Wier’s concertina corkscrew

  14. BarbieH2 says:

    Concertina Corkscrew

    Marshall Arthur Wier of Upper Norwood, Surrey, England, invented the compound levers.
    Patent No. 12 804 from Sept. 25, 1884.

  15. jvdl says:

    cork screw, the accordion part adds leverage.

  16. Spider7115 says:

    Weir’s patent corkscrew

  17. Darlin1111 says:

    Looks like it might be a very early corkscrew…

  18. flash472002 says:

    I don’t know what else it can be other than a fancy corkscrew.

  19. seattleite says:

    looks like a cork screw…perhaps for something larger than winebottles

  20. bijom says:

    I’m guessing a corkscrew for very large barrels with very deep corks.

  21. cricket43344 says:

    It is a old fashioned cork screw

  22. flamingopat says:

    It may be a cork or bung puller, aka corkscrew, but it looks quite large so maybe it was used to pull the bung from casks of wine and spirits!

  23. Danny51 says:

    Vintage Concertina corkscrew. c. 1884

  24. clippertwo says:

    XL cork screw !

  25. Cldy2day says:

    Whiskey barrel cork screw

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