Antique & Modern Nail age and history questions & answers.

This article series describes antique and modern cut nails focusing on hand wrought and cut nails used in wood frame construction or interior finishing or carpentry work.

Companion articles in this series describes and illustrates antique & modern hardware: door knobs, latches, hinges, window latches, hardware, nails & screws can help determine a building's age by noting how those parts were fabricated: by hand, by machine, by later generations of machine.

FAQs on Finding the Age of Nails

These questions & answers about determining the age of nails and other building hardware were posted originally at the topic home page:

NAILS, AGE & HISTORY - home - be sure to review that article.

Also see the nail age determination questions and answers suggested

at NAIL AGE DETERMINATION KEY - use this key to guess at the age of your nail or spike

[Click to enlarge any image]

On 2023-03-11 by InspectApedia Editor (mod)

Colin's additional questions and photos can now be seen

at NAIL SPLITS & CRACKS vs AGE

where we discuss in depth how to use splits in a nail to help determine its age.

On 2023-03-11 by Colin

The nail was found when de-nailing a baulk of timber during the restoration of a 1820's building in Sunderland. The original owner was a shipbuilder therefore the baulk may have come from an earlier wooden ship.

Any ideas on the distortion?

On 2022-07-23 by InspectApedia-911 (mod) - flat head tacks found in old painting

@Kerem,

Great photo of tacks.

You may see above on this page and in this article series at the very first nail making machines were in fact made to produce tacks.

In your photo I see regular Notch marks across the shaft of the tack under the head where the machine gripped the shank of the tack in order to stamp that flat head on it. Seeing those marks and the fine and regularly tapered point I think these are fairly modern tacks.

You can't pinpoint these to a specific country but it might be worth posting an image of the painting itself as someone may recognize it and knowing that we might know more about its origin.

For Conservation Wiki, David Goist wrote "Historical Review of Nails and Tacks" though it does not add a lot of detail beyond what we have published here.

One note from Goist is helpful regarding your question:

"Mr. Holland stated that there are some small forming differences between British- and American-made tacks. Greater differences exist in the rest of Europe and the world in general. Some European and Asian tacks are made from square-rolled wire and are not at all like American cut tacks." - Goist, at https://www.conservation-wiki.com/wiki/Stretchers_and_Strainers:_Materials_and_Equipment#Historical_Review_of_Nails_and_Tacks 2022/07/22 -

Excerpt Copy at HISTORICAL REVIEW OF NAILS AND TACKS [PDF] - excerpting Goist on Nails & Tacks in the conservation-wiki.com article on stretchers & strainers.

Let's see if we can find Mr. Goist's similar work:

Goist, David, Historical Review of Nails and Tacks" in the Painting Conservation Catalog, Vol. II, Paintings Specialty Group. American Institute for Conservation.

On 2022-07-22 by Kerem

Hello! So happy for this website! I have an old painting probably from Europe somewhere. I would like to track down where it was made. Any ideas where those nails are from? And in what time? Both I can take with a magnet. Thank you so much!

 

On 2022-07-09 by InspectApedia-911 (mod) - Portland Maine bronze spike may be from a ship timber

@St,

Thanks that's a great photo. It's worth noting the type of tip on the nail. It seems to be a simple wedge type. It would make sense to have found this bronze Spike in a ship's timber.

On 2022-07-09 by St

@InspectApedia-911, it looks like it might have been worn away. It’s concave, with a little extra pitting. Might be able to see better in this picture…

On 2022-07-09 by InspectApedia-911 (mod)

@St,

That's certainly a reasonable guess. If you look at the tip closely can you see whether it was broken in that funny shape or whether it has been cut?

On 2022-07-09 by St

Found this on the beach near Portland, Maine. It’s about 5.5 inches long and weighs 103 grams. I think it’s bronze; it’s not magnetic. My guess is it’s a ~1800 ship spike. Am I close?

On 2022-05-27 by InspectApedia (mod)

@Rick Craig,

Our most-complete advice on guessing age at

NAIL AGE DETERMINATION KEY

https://inspectapedia.com/interiors/Determine-age-of-old-nails.php

Please do take a look.

On 2022-05-26 by Rick Craig

 

On 2022-05-01 by Inspectapedia Com Moderator - square headed tapering nails with center rib found in 1869 farm house stairs

@Kami horricks,

The straight -tapering sides on that nice nail and that raised center rib tell us something about its era of production

Details are at NAIL AGE DETERMINATION KEY - use this key to guess at the age of your nail or spike

On 2022-05-01 by Kami horricks

Hello! We are attempting to prove age on our farm house. The deed says 1869 but I have plat records showing a dwelling in the same spot going back to 1855 as well as the grant records of the original owners and settlers of our sector of our town ship( not its not an amazing discovery but I'm enthralled with it lol)

I am convinced our kitchen area was the original dwelling. A log cabin. Our stairs have these nails in them. Could you help me date them? I've had a hard time matching them exactly. The photo shows a side view of an entire nail as well as the head of one still Installed. Much appreciated!!!

On 2022-04-17 by Inspectapedia Com Moderator

@Charles,

12 mill is a reasonable guess. More details see

NAIL AGE DETERMINATION KEY

https://inspectapedia.com/interiors/Determine-age-of-old-nails.php

Included there are some specific nail comparisons including clout nails, using some reproductions and measurements as examples.

Please take a look and let me know what you think.

On 2022-04-17 by Charles

I found an old nail thats is apx 2 in long, with a hexagonal rectangle head. People in the Colorado rockies with nails were abundant from 1858 onward. May be a clout nail? Any help with identifying its use or age would be appreciated

On 2022-04-04 by Inspectapedia Com Moderator

@Joan Jorgensen,

Unfortunately that nail is so rusted as to offer only a few clues about its history:

- look for any splits along the length of the shaft as a clue about iron fibre directory (details above on this page)

- examine that round head for signs of machine fabrication

On 2022-04-04 by Joan Jorgensen

Hi we found this 3” mail in our back yard in Green Valley, south of Tucson, AZ.

...

On 2022-03-13 by Inspectapedia Com Moderator

@Michael,

I suspect that the spike has lost so much of its body by rust that we won't find tool marks or cut marks that might help give its age though the hand forging you see help rule out machine cut spikes.

What's left then are guessing history by the surrounding context: history of activities in the area, types of structures, distance to the De Cymru coastline (possible dock or ship spike?) or to large wood structures (barns?).

You will find our most-complete advice on guessing age at

NAIL AGE DETERMINATION KEY

https://inspectapedia.com/interiors/Determine-age-of-old-nails.php

where you’ll read, when estimating the age, properties, use, and history of a metal fastener like a nail, spike, or screw, we look

1. at the item itself for clues about how it was made, of what materials, and in some cases iron fibre direction that can bracket age of manufacture

2. at contextual clues: what we know from surrounding materials, location, history of the area, etc.

On 2022-03-13 by Michael

Hi. I found this in South Wales. This seems to predate my other finds so was wondering if anyone can shed some light on this. It's 18/19cm long. The head is almost rugby ball shaped and appears to have been hand forged? Cheers

On 2022-03-04 by Inspectapedia Com Moderator - modern cut nails - unknown metal, no burrs?

@Cowin,

Thanks for the added detail.

Those regular nail shanks, absence of tool marks, and the regular burrs along the shank edges also suggest modern production. Can you say whether those are bronze, or now that I look again, iron, or what is the metal?

You will find our most-complete advice on guessing age at NAIL AGE DETERMINATION KEY https://inspectapedia.com/interiors/Determine-age-of-old-nails.php

And you might try Google image search or a google search on any nail codes or letters you are seeing in the nail head.

It's worth a google search - be sure to include the country and city closest to where found when doing a search.

On 2022-03-04 by Cowin

Sorry not sure what you mean. I don't think they are bronze. I was wondering if they can be identified by the headstamp. Maybe english 1800s?

On 2022-03-03 by Cowin

They are only around 12cm in length

[Photo above]

On 2022-03-03 by Inspectapedia Com Moderator - age of nails found in eastern New South Wales

@Cowin,

Those look like twentieth-century spikes that might have been used on a ship or a dock

On 2022-03-03 by Cowin

Hi. I found these 2 nails in eastern NSW site. Can you please help me with identifying them? One has what looks like a diamond shape head stamp and the other looks like either an L or the number 7.

Please see attached picture

On 2022-01-19 by Inspectapedia Com Moderator

@Andrew Cowles,

Thanks. Nice photo.

The head suggests a fairly modern machine made decorative nail.

On 2022-01-19 by Andrew Cowles

Hi Guys,

I found this interesting Iron nail in my garden. It's square and seems hand forged, but has a nice domed copper head.

We're in the UK. Any idea what period it would be from?

Many thanks,

Andy

On 2022-01-09 by Inspectapedia Com Moderator

@Coleman,
You will find our most-complete advice on guessing age at

NAIL AGE DETERMINATION KEY

On 2022-01-08 by Coleman

@inspectapedia.com.moderator, I found this spike metal detecting in MO. Anybody can help me date it. Four sided spike

On 2022-01-03 by Inspectapedia Com Moderator

@Simon,

You can see our most-complete advice on guessing age at

NAIL AGE DETERMINATION KEY

https://inspectapedia.com/interiors/Determine-age-of-old-nails.php

The blue origin however is another question and one I don't have an answer for.

On 2022-01-03 by Simon

Drift wood with single nail. Trying to establish age and possibly blue origin

 

On 2020-10-11 by (mod)

In the NAIL AGE DETERMINATION KEY, Joan we see that a hand-wrought head and a nail shank with uniform taper might help date this nail as 1830 to present.

On 2020-10-11 by Joan

Hi, I’m hoping someone can give me an idea of how old this is. Bought an antique washstand today, I know nothing about it’s age or background.

A guy was selling it online, he found it sitting in a garage on a property he bought. This nail fell out of the back of the washstand as we were unloading it from my car. Length of nail is 1.25 inches or 2.54 mm.

On 2020-09-19 by (mod) - antique spike with hole in tip

Thank you for the interesting antique nail photo and inquiry David. I don't know for sure what that hole-tipped spike or nail was for and in fact I'm not sure it was ever intended to be a fastener.

An offset hail head - if it's a nail - is often found where a nail was intended to be easily removed later, and in larger spikes, to hold a plate in place such as on railroad ties.

The hole in the tip makes this look like loom shuttle. Arguing against that is that usually a shuttle was made of wood. I'm researching further and include here a close-up of your iron spike with oblong hole in tip.

On 2020-10-03 by David Perry

I found this while metal detecting old colonial woods in Massachusetts. In the Sudbury area. Near homesteads and agricultural areas. 5" spike with what looks like the eye of a needle on its tip. Any clues?

On 2020-09-19 by (mod)

Kat, that looks like a modern "wire" or round-shanked machine made nail.

On 2020-09-19 by Kat

I found these while metal detecting in the Pamlico Sound area/Coastal North Carolina area in a rural lumber/ wooded lot. Any ideas on the age and use? I’ve since found about 6 more, all bent in the same way, with no surrounding material.

On 2020-07-02 - by (mod) - age of nails in antique church pew

Very nice photos, Kathy. In the article NAIL AGE DETERMINATION KEY you'll find my discussion of antique cut nails that are wider mid-shank, such as in your photo. Here is an excerpt from my photos in this article.

On 2020-07-02 by Kathy caisse

I just disassembled an old pew. It was free. Previous owner bought it from a church in new england 1960s.
It had a history of nails in it. These seemed the oldest.

Below: Photo of antique nails from a church pew from reader Caisse

Below: photo of not-so-old round headed nail from reader Garcia

[Sorry, original text lost] We commented that as a round-headed "wire" nail this is probably a modern fastener.

On 2020-05-31 - by (mod) - large thin headed square shank nail age

Looks hand wrought.

Where you'll find a series of questions that can help put a nail into context and maybe make a guess at its age.

That large head suggests it was intended to hold some thin material to a surface, such as tin or canvas.

Country, city, location, surrounding buildings, etc. are suggested questions in the companion article I cited.

On 2020-05-31 by RC

RC said:

Found this small square shank nail with large head while out metal-detecting.

Any idea what it is or its age?

3 photos:

1 above

2 below

...

On 2020-05-17 - by (mod) - round threaded fastener is modern

Thanks for the question and photo, Foot.

From those regular threads I infer that this is a modern fastener.

On 2020-05-17 by footredlion

Hi there, I found this today on a beach . It was with a piece if wood that it was once nailed into. Any ideas? It is around 3" - Thanks

On 2020-03-25 - by (mod) -

CB

The nail is so rusty and absent of information that, with regret, I can't say much about it.

However, take a look through the suggestions on the page NAIL AGE DETERMINATION KEY where we discuss how to guess the age of old nails and hardware.

Noting things like:

• Country, city where found
  
• History of construction and mercantile activity in the area
  
• Age of surrounding buildings or building remains
  
• Subtle clues such as splits in the iron of the nail or burr marks or hand hammering marks
  
  can all support a reasonable guess at the nail's history, age, and use.
  

On 2020-03-25 by C Bradley

Hi, My children and I found the attached image of an old rusty iron nail 8n the local woods, and wanted to do a history project on it but cannot find any examples of what it could be on the internet.

It 24cms in length with a large round head. Any suggestions much appreciated.

On 2020-03-14 - by (mod) - Nail from Victoria BC tide pool

I can't see much, JJ, but it looks like a fairly-modern round flat head machine made nail. Are there hammer marks? Is the tip machine cut?

On 2020-03-14 by JJG

I found this in a tidal pool near Victoria B.C. and was wondering about its age.

On 2020-02-05 by (mod) - old spike from Colorado

looks hand wrought and large enough to be a timber frame, mining timber, or railroad tie spike.

On 2020-02-05 by Carrie

Found this spike while cleaning out my mother’s treasures. From Colorado most likely, any thoughts? Has a long drive down the side. Thanks!

On 2020-01-20 by (mod) -

How interesting, Gabby. Rectangular shank, tapered neck under a large flat nail-head. What is the length of the nail?

Is that blue color something you did to the nail?

On 2020-01-20 by Gabby

We found this old nail in a river and I haven't found any pictures and was wondering about its history as it seems unique.

On 2019-09-09 2 by (mod) - age of canvas painting stretcher tack

A bit blurry Marlon, but that looks to me like a machine made cut nail or tack - that shape continues into modern production.

However sometimes we can see a detail such as a split or fracture line in the iron of the nail that can date it or a magnified view may show which side(s) of the nail bear cut or stamping burrs that can also identify a nail as modern or older.

Sorry but from just the photo I'm uncertain about any more detailed guess.

On 2019-09-09 by Marlon Sigler

Hi, I read the complete articule. Very interesting how nails contribute to know the age of a building as well, I think, a work of art.

I have this painting that was stretched using the type of nails in the picture. I’m wondering in what period was this nail produced and when the production itself stoped. Please advise. Thank you!

On 2019-09-09 by (mod) - antique nail from Norwegian church

Ole

Really upsetting to everyone I'm sure about the fire. Maybe we should post a photo of the remains as a warning. Anyway, see what you can salvage., safely.

You may have seen that we've visited Norway and documented some of the historic buildings there. Certainly sorry to lose this one.

On 2019-09-09 1 by Ole

Thanks a lot for the swift reply! I am going to hand it over to the archaeological faculty for closer inspection, which means that I will lose it to the state of Norway if it's medieval, but I support that.

The vee-splits certainly did do their job... until somebody set fire (!) to the 800 years old building recently. Speechless.

The spike was salvaged from the rubbles shortly before they were disposed of for good... I'll let you know what the other experts say!

On 2019-09-09 by (mod) -

Ole that's a very interesting spike - having those vee-shaped details along the spike shaft that would have been intended to resist withdrawal from wood.

I suspect this is a fairly modern nail: a closer look is warranted but I don't see hand forging hammer marks. The spike is probably too big to be a candidate for cut nail processes.

I don't see any splits along the long axis of the nail that could date the iron itself .

My guess would be late 1800s

On 2019-09-09 by Ole

Hi, here's what I found in the relics of a Norwegian stave church, originally raised around 1200 AD.

I am wondering if this is from around that time (it was rather uncommon to use iron nails around that time, but it did occur occasionally) or whether this might have been added when the building saw extensive reconstruction around 1690 AD, or possibly even later, when it was reconstructed again in the 1890's. Any help much appreciated!

On 2019-07-17 by (mod) - how old is this spike?

Bri

I don't see hammer marks or other hand forging details. I don't see delamination lines nor machine cut lines that would let us guess a date range;

Best bet is to go through the few nail dating questions at NAIL AGE DETERMINATION KEY

Also when posting a "how old is this " photo it's helpful to know

Country

City

Age of surrounding building or building materials (if pertinent)

On 2019-07-16 by Briguy

Hi does anyone know about when this spike was made? I found it metal detecting. Thank you

 

On 2020-06-14 - by (mod) - dating iron fragments

Sheila

Thank you for the interesting photo and question about those antique iron fragments.

The amount of corrosion is so extreme I can't see much, but these may be sprites or early headless nails. See if there are any splits running the length of the fragments as that can help with dating.

On 2020-06-13 by Sheila

This was found while digging for fence posts. Last year two artifacts were found mere yards away. They include an antler tool spearhead and stone tomahawk axe. Site is near Indian village and mound burials.

Currently it is in city limits downtown. French settlement in northwest Ohio.

On 2020-05-31 by (mod) - large thin round-head on thin hand-wrought nail

Looks hand wrought. [Photo above]

I also posted 3 of your photos over at NAIL AGE DETERMINATION KEY

Where you'll find a series of questions that can help put a nail into context and maybe make a guess at its age.

That large head suggests it was intended to hold some thin material to a surface, such as tin or canvas.

Country, city, location, surrounding buildings, etc. are suggested questions in the companion article I cited.

On 2020-05-31 by Robert Cox

Curious of the age of this"nail" any info would be great!

On 2020-05-29 by peggyannosborne

Am adding some other photos for detail. I lightened them under macro lens to show more detail. I hope it helps clarify! thank you, and Regards, PeggyAnn

...

On 2020-05-29 - by (mod) - Eastern Canada - Island Coast Nails, clinched?

To peggyannosborne

Thanks for your interesting photo and query.

That bent-over nail suggest to me that this was a "clinched" nail, hammered through layers of wood material and then bent-over to resist withdrawal.

That actually gives a date range as we explain at NAIL AGE DETERMINATION KEY

As we note on this page

Before the 1830s the iron fibres in machine cut nails ran across the nail shank, causing the nail to break off if the user tried to clinch it's protruding end.

So we know that your nail is post 1830.

If we can see more details of head and shank of the nail we might know more, but it's so rusted I'm doubtful.

The clue that remains is that tapering under the head.

Look closely at the shank diameter for tapering and for signs to confirm it's a cut nail.

On that Nail Age Determination Key page we quote Nelson:

If your cut nail is irregular in shank width and has the "A" type side burrs it's likely to have been made before the late 1830s.

On 2020-05-27 by peggyannosborne

Had no idea nails had so much to them until I found this site! :) After a big storm the other day, I found an odd nail, iron, that looks very handmade, & has a strange shape.

(Looking at your site, I discovered some nails are bent over at the tip or clinched, but this seems not to quite fit that bill. ) I took a bunch of pics of it & of of the way it was found in my yard following a huge windstorm.

I live on an island in the Atlantic, just off the east coast of Canada, where there were a great many large sailing ships docking in the 1700 and 1800s. It was a also an active boat building area.

Historically, it was settled by Acadians during the late 1700s, and had also during the tall ship era, been a busy trading port for the US, and for European fishing vessels. Earlier, and until the mid 1800s, MicMac tribes were frequently in the area to fish and hunt.

My land is on the ocean, mostly forested, After a tree uprooted completely & fell from the wind earlier this week, I noticed a little rock/dirt fall that came down an incline from the fallen tree root/base; this nail was lying atop a flat old stone. (It had not been there before, as I often walk our dog in that area & would have seen it.

This large heavy oval shaped stone, was an anchor stone from a "picasse" (old French-style anchor) & had been lying there for some time, long before we moved here 18 years ago The wooden anchor parts long ago rotted away but the stone was still there.

At first, I thought perhaps it was a nail from that old anchor, but when we moved here, I was told the anchor was a 20th C version, not a really old one.

After rooting around under vegetation I was able to find some of the rotted wood from the anchor that still had rope attached; in the wood were two somewhat rusted heavy "normal-looking" nails, nothing at all like this nail made of iron.

They were far thicker, far more machine-made and the head was flat and even sitting like a cap above a smooth even nail. The iron nail has a head that slopes down onto the shaft part, very unlike the steel nails.

So, all in all, I've no idea if this iron nail has been here for a very very long time, had been buried & now unearthed, or had blown in on one of our windstorms or a hurricane we had last fall that brought several huge trees down on our property & washed many things ashore.

I have taken pictures of where I found the nail, the surroundings, and about 50 various ones of the nail itself, as it has intrigued me. Now, perhaps you will recognize it as a 20th or 21st C nail that just got really badly rusted, but I am pretty sure it is not.

It will be very educational for me, whatever your can tell about it. Let me know if you want more pictures: i could post them on Dropbox for you to see.

The nail is very rusty, quite dark overall, and has some small reddish areas.

Some of the pics are natural in color: others I lightened a lot in order to show detail and shape better. The hooked or bent end is so odd: I cannot figure out how it got the flattened triangular shape if it was from being pounded down and over or clinched.

I seems far too purposeful, but what the heck other thing could it have been, as one could not drive a nail through anything with the bent-over foot. Help! :). Peggy Ann

On 2020-05-24 - by (mod) - long thin nail from UK garden near mining village

Matt

Thank you for the old nail Soto and question.

The nail is so badly rusted that it's hard to see key details, but it's length in the bit of the sides that I can see suggest that it may be hand-wrought not machine cut.

On 2020-05-24 by Matt

Found this nail in my garden. We live in the UK in an old mining village which was built circa 1894. Would anyone have any info about this nail?

On 2020-05-06 - by (mod) - Irish Coast Nail

Jon,

Thanks for the interesting but very corroded Irish nail photo. Can you take a closer look to guess at

1. is the nail shank really round or just rounded by corrosion?

2. are there any hammer or forging marks?

3. are there any splits in the nail? that can bracket the age

On 2020-05-05 1 by Jon

Found washed up on beach East coast of Ireland...any thoughts?

On 2020-03-06 by Anonymous - detail of flat rounded head, round-shanked nail

On 2019-09-27 - by (mod) - Nail from old fort in Valencia, Spain

I'm unsure, too, Karen as the corrosion is quite deep;

that tapered head is perhaps a key to further research, along with nail size and history of wood usage and buildings at the Valencia site.

I'll see what else we can find on rectangular tapered head spikes.

On 2019-09-27 by Karen

I picked this up last summer off a path around the old fort in Valenca, Spain.

I've tried to match it to photos on online resources but can't be certain of its origin.

It's 11cms in length, has a square head and tapers to a point; looks to be forged rather than cut.

Probably iron rather than copper or brass and it is rather corroded. Can anyone suggest its age and origin?

On 2020-05-06 - by (mod) -

Maddie,

I don't think that was a bolt but I'd agree that it's sufficiently corroded that we can't see alot.

If the shank cross-section is really round (not just "rounded" from rusting) then it's a modern nail.

On 2020-05-05 by Maddie

Hi there! I found this nail while looking for arrowheads in a farmer's feild in Southeast Michigan.

My dad says it might be a bolt, but it certainly looks old. I do not know too much about this, apologies! If you need any more photos, please let me know! :)

On 2020-05-07 - by (mod) - Sprites and other square cut headless nails

1805 - present: nails made completely by machine

Take a look at our description of nail "sprites" - small headless cut nails, described

at NAILS, AGE & HISTORY - topic home.

On 2020-05-07 1 by Anonymous - head of square cut Norwegian nail sprite

It's a square cut nail, headless I added another picture. Just wonder how old it is.

On 2020-05-06 - by (mod) - Norwegian-made "sprite" nail

Anon -

That may be a Norwegian-made "sprite" - take a look at the headless sprite nail photo near the top of this page.

Check the nail under a magnifying glass to see if you can see any splits in the iron. The direction of such splitting is another clue to the nail's age, as we'll discuss further if you can see anything.

On 2020-05-05 by Anonymous

Hi from Norway, I found this old nail, buried around 10 inches deep , probably from the 17th or 18th century ?

Or is it a nail ?

On 2020-05-05 - by (mod) - round shanked modern "wire" nail identification tips

I don't think these are old nails, Gary. The regular annular rings near the nail head and the round shank of the nail are characteristic of modern "wire" nails made by modern machinery.

The annular rings on the nail shank just under the nail head are imposed when the machine grasps the nail shank to form the nail head.

On 2020-05-05 by Gary - round nails found in Utah at 8000 ft elevation.

I would like to "date" these nails\spikes found in the mountains of Utah about 8000 feet. They were also located in an area subject to heavy moisture much of the year.

I have attached a photo alongside of a washer found with them. I don't believe them to be that old, but not sure.

The nails are 6-7 inches long and have the annular rings on 2 sides and located just under the circular head.

The real question is if it is possible that they could be older than 1900, and if so, how much older?

On 2020-05-05 by (mod)

Apologies, Brenda but the photo is a bit to blurry for me to have an opinion about the fastener

On 2020-05-05 by Brenda - 18th century house basement ceiling "nail"

HI, I attached a picture of a late 18th century house basement ceiling. I am so curious about the nail. It looks metal or steal I guess.

Someone told me the would is 1900.
I appreciate your input and I hope everyone is safe. Thank you
Bren

On 2020-04-20 - by (mod) -

Dan

Thank you for the question and photos of an old nail and its age and fabrication details.

To have space for a detailed reply, I've moved your photos and my response into the

article NAILS, AGE & HISTORY - home, in the article section on nail and hardware age beginning at 1815.

Please take a look and don't hesitate to comment further or ask further.

If you can give me a very sharp higher-resolution photo of the nail that would be helpful.

You may need to clear your browser cache or refresh the page to see my updates and additions to the article.

On 2020-04-20 by Dan Nelson

Here is a pic of the head of the nail in question. Thanks.

On 2020-03-30 by Kerri

Found it but know nothing about it

 

On 2020-02-01 - by (mod) -

Sounds interesting, Kerry; You might try some patent searches using various combinations of your observations

On 2020-02-01 by Kerry Emmerson

Hi.
I found an old square nail on the bedrock beneath the overburden on Indian Creek, Happy Camp, Siskiyou county. CA.
It had a wire center of a harder. shinier, woven steel.

I am not mistaken here. I wish I hadn't misplaced it as nobody has heard of it nor can I locate their existence online. I'm still looking.

On 2020-01-03 - by (mod) - age of big spike with groove in side

Gee I'm not sure Shirlee;

Those very big spikes were often used in post and beam construction - making the structure newer than those using wooden pegs or "treenails" - late 1800s

On 2019-12-29 by Shirlee

Here is another picture that shows the groove on the side.

On 2019-12-29 by Shirlee

I found this while hiking off a trail in Maryland and am curious about it. It was partially buried near what looked like the stone foundation of a one room cabin.

It is 12 inches long and has grooves on two sides. In the same area, I also found a wrought iron wall bracket that I was able date to circa 1870. Do you know what it is and what it might have been used for?

I don’t see hammer marks on it.

Question: are these nails and bolts from a ship?

2019/10/12 David asked

Hello, Can you please tell me how old this hardware is and If it would of been used to make a ship or not? I found them in water so they are weathered. I’d really appreciate it!

Thank You!!
David

Reply: nails, bolts, rivets used in shipbuilding date back over 2,400 years

Hi David

You have an assortment of bent and straight iron hardware there; a cut nail or two, a nut and bolt assembly, and a large machine made bent spike.

The lines of the spike are least rusted and thus it's easiest to examine for hand-tooling marks (none found); I think this is mostly modern hardware, the spike perhaps from post and beam or dock construction.

NAIL AGE DETERMINATION KEY can help you make an informed guess about the the age of these fasteners.

Were these fasteners used to make a ship? Early wooden ships used large wooden spikes to secure mortise and tenon joints - "Treenails"; as water, especially salt water is corrosive, metal nails of later ships and boats were galvanized or bronze.

Unless we have more context I can't make a useful guess at that answer; a wide variety of fasteners, including spikes, smaller nails, rivets, and screws were all used in shipbuilding.
More modern nails used in wooden boats are copper or bronze, typically ring-shanked with wide heads. Cut nails produced as rosehead square shank spikes of lengths from 50 to 200 mm long are still produced.

Metal nails used in ships have an ancient history as cited in this example research

• Shalev, S., Y. Kahanov, and C. Doherty, NAILS FROM A 2,400 YEAR OLD SHIPWRECK: A STUDY OF COPPER IN A MARINE ARCHAEOLOGICAL ENVIRONMENT [PDF] JOM Journal of the Minerals, Metals and Materials Society 51, no. 2 (1999): 14-17.
  
  Abstract: The metal nails that fastened the wooden components of a 2,400 year old ship found along the coast of Kibbutz Ma'agan Mikhael, Israel, were made of unalloyed copper that was intensively hammered. A lead isotype analysis of one nail indicates with high probability that it was made of copper from Cyprus.
  
  The copper of the nails in the wood was replaced entirely by copper sulfide mineral, displaying the occurrence of deep anaerobic conditions in a breaker zone under a shallow cover of sand. the slow decay of the cellulose and hemicellulose in the wood is a possible explanation for the specific necessary environmental conditions.
• Tripati, Sila, M. Sujatha, R. Vijendra Rao, and K. Satyanarayana Rao. "Use of timber in shipbuilding industry: Identification and analysis of timber from shipwrecks off Goa coast, India." Current Science (2005): 1022-1027.

Below: modern bronze boat nails.

And the following illustration of modern Rosehead Square-Shank Spikes used in boatbuilding are from the Glasgow Steel Nail Co.

- Source: Glasgow Steel Nail Co. (Division of Acorn Mfg.), 457 School Street Mansfield Massachusetts 02048 USA Website: http://www.glasgowsteelnail.com, retrieved 20198/10/12 original source: http://www.glasgowsteelnail.com/Boats.htm

These spikes are sold in sizes from 50x4mm to 200 x 8mm and are used world-wide, typically for historic restoration work.

Question: Hook top nail head: wire fencing nail from North Carolina

2019/09/15 Barry asked

Dear sirs..
I found this spike in the parking lot where I work in the southwestern tip of N.C.

Any idea of age and what kind of a fastener it was ?

Hi .... I have another pic of the old spike I found which has I think the #1 stamped on it

Reply: Antique wire fencing nails

I noted by email that may be a wire fencing nail.

In the U.S. there was an explosion of nail inventions in the last half of the 1800s including a range of nails used in fencing, some with special heads to hold wire against the wood post and some including a protrusion that made removal of the nail with a hammer easier should fencing repair or adjustment be needed.

This is the Brinkerhoff wire fence nail discussed in the article NAIL AGE DETERINATION KEY (live link at end of this page)

Question:

20190/9/12 Wazoo Gotya asked:

Found this in pensacola florida can anyone give me any detail on maybe how old it is

...

Reply:

From the head shape and rust patterns, Gotya, I'm guessing this is a modern cut nail - 20th century or late 19th century.

We discuss these wire fencing nails at NAILS, AGE & HISTORY

 

On 2019-05-01 by (mod) - History & age of nails

Thanks CR, this looks like the rusted-off head of a large spike - such as I'd expect to see in post and beam construction or at the seaside, dock construction.

Knowing what was around where you found the nail, old buildings, seaside, history occupancy, etc. would also be helpful.

I suspect from the rust patterns that the "grains" in the iron run parallel to the shaft direction, making this one of the more-modern alloys - perhaps after 1830. (I need more research on nail fabrication in Wales and the rest of the UK).

Nail fabrication in the UK dates from Roman times but machine made nails are of course modern.

In general in the UK cut nails or machine fabricated nails are not likely to be dated earlier than 1811 - the earliest report I have found was of Joseph Dyer, established cut nail fabrication in Birmingham ca 1811.

I've added some UK citations in the history of nail fabrication references in the article NAIL AGE DETERINATION KEY (live link at end of this page) (you may need to refresh your browser cache to see them).

Pay particular attention to the PDF file about the Ewbank Nail listed under Australia nail history as this nail was also used throughout Britain.

Therein see the square-point nail from 1893.

On 2019-05-01 by CR

Ahh yeah dimensions would be useful. Another photo included. After some more clean up I’ve found some more details.

There is a clear seam on top of the head where the shaft was attached to the head like a collar. The metal also shows some interesting patterns not sure if this is from weathering or the type of metal/manufacturing. I would like to believe this is a nail but seems unlikely that this can really be classified as such.

On 2019-05-01 by (mod) -

Nice job and photo; your cleanup of the metal spike? shows a very square head and straight line sides suggesting this is a machine made nail or spike; next time include a ruler in the photo so we have an idea of its dimensions.

On 2019-05-01 by CR

I gave it a quick clean up, removed most of the rust.

So here is another photo. I’ve never seen something like this before and haven’t been able to find any similar examples online. I’m not even 100% sure it is a nail but that’s my best guess.

On 2019-05-01 by (mod) -

Thanks for the interesting photo. I can't quite see enough nor do we know enough to have much of an opinion about the age of this particular Fastener. Please take a look at the nail age determination questions that we suggest at

NAIL AGE DETERMINATION KEY

And let me know what those tell us

On 2019-04-30 by CR

Hello,
I was hoping you could shed some light on something I found recently, image attached. I found this while out walking the dogs in sunny Wales.

On 2019-04-19 by (mod) - machine made tack

Kathy

While this could be an early machine-made tack it's definitely modern - machine made, not hand forged. Notice the smooth flat head, absence of hammer marks, uniformly tapered edge, and that center ridge that may be from a cutting machine. Those details place the nail in the outline of dates on the page NAIL AGE DETERINATION KEY (live link at end of this page)

No earlier than 1848 - assuming your picture frame and nails were made in North America - and possibly as late as yesterday.

On 2019-04-1 by kathyfox1953

I recently came into possession of an old picture frame. The frame has two old nails holding the hanging wire on. Can you please tell me when this nail was made and how it was made? The nail is 1/2 inches long. Thank you so much.

On 2019-04-19 by (mod) -

Roger:

Use the Add Image button to show us a photo of the chair and in a second comment perhaps you could post a photo of the nails you want to replicate.

I suspect Tremont can get you pretty close without making new nails from scratch.

Tremont Nail Company, P.O. Box 31, Mansfield, MA 02048, Tel: 800-835-0121, 508-339-4500 Website: http://www.tremontnail.com/

On 2019-04-18 by roger francis

I have an antique, very old hooped spindle back windsor chair which use oblong shaped nails, not square headed. I am trying to date the chair. The nails looked to be forged.

On 2019-03-28 by (mod) - round nail shaft diameter and symmetrical cut-point

Stew

The you perfectly round shaft and regular cut points suggest me but it's not a very antique spike but it is an interesting one. It's quite clear from the weld marks on the shaft that it was welded to some other structure and of course as you've doubtless noticed, the head has been smashed as well.

On 2019-03-28 by stew

Bak in the early 1970s while exploring the coastal caves out near the entrance to the San Francisco Bay with friends when I was a kid, I spotted this spike wedged down in the rocks at low tide. Stupidly (kids are fearless-- no judgement)

I climbed down to get it. I've had it ever since and never really knew where it may have come from or when it was made.

It measures approx 13.5 inches with a 1 inch diameter shaft and a 2 inch diameter head. Any ideas?

On 2019-03-28 by (mod) - irregular nail shaft diameter and rectangular edges vs round nail shaft

Tracy

The irregular nail shaft diameter and remains of somewhat rectangular edges make this look like an antique cut nail or possibly a hand wrought nail. But I'm not sure from your photo.

If the nail is essentially round in cross section it's a modern wire-drawn nail.

On 2019-03-18 by Tracy

I found this nail in a load of gravel in Missouri. It looks to me like its a hand wrought nail, but I really have no idea. Any thoughts?

On 2018-12-27 by (mod) - ding or hammer marks on old round nails may mean salvage & re-use

RE: Cat's round nail age:

if there were hammer marks on a round nail: such ding marks on a round nail could be from straightening a bent spike for re-use.

These were valuable back when - depending on the location, even in the 1930s and 1940s in some areas of the U.S. younger family members were put to work salvaging nails and spikes from old wood and straightening them to pass them on to their carpenter dad or uncle. (cf. P Galow, PA)

Your nail looks more as if many indentations are pitting from corrosion.

On 2018-12-10 by Cat - nail with many ping marks on the sides

The head is gone. It has many ping Mark's on the sides. It looks hand made. My camera is not so great.
Thank you for your reply!

On 2018-12-09 by (mod) - machine made wire nail - round nail found in a Bayou

I can't see the head in the photo but it looks as if you're handling around, machine-made Spike of considerable size.

If found in a bayou I would expect such a spike was probably used in the construction of a dock.

On 2018-12-08 by Cat

Found this in a bayou. Cleaned it off a bit. Is it a nail? What was it used for?
Thank you!

On 2018-11-18 by Rich

I found this nail has a triangle head. Looks like the nail may have a twist

On 2018-05-10 by (mod) -

I don't think manufacturing inconsistency is going to give us a date for when the nails were made. I see that sort of inconsistency even now depending on the fabricator.

On 2018-05-09 2 by karl

hi. i'm trying to get a guesstimate on age of wire nails with inconsistent heads. slightly different sizes and some a bit offset to center.

i've searched and searched but can't find information about when wire nails became consistent with head sizes and when things were still rough... any help would be appreciated. thanks! (no image due to broken phone)

On 2018-02-06 by (mod) - old nails in 100+ year old log timber structure in Ca

Anon

you are welcome to use the picture frame icon to the right of the comment button to attach some sharp photos of those Nails as that would certainly be of interest to other readers

On 2018-02-04 by Anonymous

Found really cool old nails in 100+ year old log timber structure in ca well preserved looks like Natchez antibellum

On 2018-02-04 by William pulliam

What kind of nail is this

On 2017-08-30 by MWoo - old looking nails on the bank of the Themes river in London

Hey there, I found two really old looking nails on the bank of the Themes river in London, and I'm very curious as how to go about applying a rough date to them.

Anyone have any advice?
Thanks!

On 2017-05-15 by (mod) -

Beyond that, in my opinion more significant to look at the types of saw kerf marks or tool marks on beams as part of guessing their age.

On 2017-05-15 by (mod) - nails in chestnut beams

Anon,

Regarding Chestnut beams, you haven't asked a question but I'm guessing you're asking the relationship between the presence of chestnut beings in buildings and building age.

If we exclude recycled use of old beams in newer buildings, in the United States the chestnut blight had taken a major toll on chestnut trees by 1940.

So it's safe to figure that by the nineteen-fifties those beams would have been rare in most buildings.

On 2017-05-15 by (mod) -

We have some comments about the relationship between type of nails and building age

in NAILS, AGE & HISTORY and also in the comments below for this article.

Please take a look and let me know what you think. Because nail making machine reappeared in different parts of various countries and different times there's no single correct answer to the significance of a machine cut nail without considering the geographic location.

On 2017-05-14 by Anonymous

Chestnut beams

On 2017-05-14 by Anonymous

How to tell age by nails

On 2017-05-10 by (mod) -

Dave, I took a look at your excellent photo and later if it's ok with you I will post it

at NAILS, AGE & HISTORY.

However I could not see for sure that the head of the nail was hand-forged. You might take a close look for Hammer marks. It's also the case that the age of a nail depends in part on where in the world or country it was first used.

That's because in the US for example machines that made cut nails appeared earlier on the East Coast then in the middle of the country or farther west. If the head and body of the nail are hand rough, most likely it was made before 1800 if your property is on the east coast of the US

On 2017-05-10 by Dave Worst

Can you tell the age of this nail 5 1\2" long

Square the bottom half. Wor320@aol.com

Sorry not letting me paste pic

On 2014-08-11 by (mod) - spike in our LI, NY backyard

Greg

Use our email found at our CONTACT link to send me some sharp photos if you can.

On 2014-08-10 by Greg Bruschi

Found what appears to be a very spike in our LI, NY backyard. It looks like some of the ship building

...

Continue reading at NAILS, AGE & HISTORY - topic home, or select a topic from the closely-related articles below, or see the complete ARTICLE INDEX.

Or see NAILS & HARDWARE, AGE FAQs - more Q&A on determining the age of nails.

Or see these

Recommended Articles

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• NAILS, AGE & HISTORY - home
• HORSESHOE & HORSESHOE NAIL AGE
• NAIL & HARDWARE, AGE RESEARCH
• NAIL & HARDWARE CLEAN-UP
• NAIL AGE DETERMINATION KEY - use this key to guess at the age of your nail or spike
• NAIL ID & AGE: CUT NAILS
• NAIL ID & AGE: HAND FORGED NAILS
• NAILS in BARTER & TRADE
• NAIL SPLITS & CRACKS vs AGE
• NAIL TYPE, ANTIQUE, IDENTIFICATION KEY
• RAILROAD SPIKES
• RAILROAD SPIKE AGE - CONTEXTUAL CLUES
• SAW & AXE CUTS, TOOL MARKS, AGE
• WINDOW HARDWARE AGE

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