Three Antique Treen Pastry Jiggers!

There are pastry jiggers and then there are pastry jiggers. These three are not the run of the mill pastry crimpers and cutters but fabulous pieces of Georgian Folk Art.

Antique pastry jiggers date back to at least the 16 th century and are known by several different names from jaggers, pie sealers to dough wheels. or jiggers A jagger would be the most sensible name as the wheel gives a jagged edge to the pie but Jigger is the more common name used.

A jigger consists of a wheel which can be a single wheel or a double wheel. The single wheel was used to cut through the pastry leaving a jagged line, the double wheel could cut thin pieces of pastry to make a lattice topped pie.

It has a shank or handle which then terminates at the top with either a pastry stamps, cutter or crimpers..

They were made in a variety of materials from the plentiful brass examples, wood and brass, iron through to rare examples in silver. As the pastry jigger was a lowly piece used in the kitchen, silver or highly decorated and carved examples from bone by sailors made as love tokens are difficult to find and probably never intended for use.

These three antique treen examples are unusual all three are dated 1810,1812 and 1815 with V shaped decoration to the wheels, wonderful chip carved decorations to the shank. All three were probably carved as love tokens similar to the very collectable Welsh Lovespoons. One example is unmistakably a love token with the two cut out hearts and prongs to the top, for making holes in the lids of pies to let steam escape.

The bigger one of the three has a carved heart and the name ROSE, dated 1810 with lovely chip carved decoration even to the edges. The example with the open lantern with ball, again similar to the Welsh Lovespoons has the name J Frith and date 1812 to it.

Three wonderful pieces of Georgian Treen Folk Art.