Iron cork presser shaped like a stylised crocodile, Portugese

Until the 1930s, corks were used to seal bottles of medical preparations so they could be taken home by the customer. Corks needed to be pressed and moulded in order to fit the bottle top. This crocodile-shaped cork presser has four different sized holes for pressing corks and is worked by lifting the tail up and down. Each foot of the crocodile has a hole for a screw so it can be attached to a bench. The cork press would have been made by a manufacturing chemist or pharmacist.