Carpenter's brace

Wood brace, carpenters, unsigned, Europe, 1790-1819

This item is part of the contents of the workshop that Scottish engineer James Watt developed at his home, Heathfield, at Handsworth, Birmingham, from c.1795 through to his death in 1819. Although Watt is best known for his work on the steam engine, his workshop contains a wide variety of objects from many different projects, from chemistry to sculpture-copying.

The description of the item was written by Edward Collins, the land agent responsible for Heathfield when the workshop was given to the Science Museum in 1924. Collins could not always identify what he was looking at, but always described what he saw clearly. This has allowed his descriptions to form the basis of subsequent research.

This is a joiner’s brace, beech with brass plating, steel-lined brass button-chuck and head of lignum vitae. No maker’s stamp. A tool of middle quality, and very little used (suggesting that it was bought late in Watt’s life.) One centre-bit was found with it, but it is noteworthy that its shank has not been filed to fit the chuck. Others are known to be elsewhere in the room.