Exhibition label text: Whitfield pick, late 19th century. This coaling pick has an interchangable blade held in place by a wedge.
The pick head is removable so that blunt heads can be exchanged at the coal face rather than taken to the surface for resharpening. The blunt heads would be taken up and resharpened at the end of the shift.
Coaling pick SBS 0 (complete) pointed at both ends, interchangeable blade & wedge type.
Digital image on Keeper’s computer – S:/Keeper/MyPictures/Exhibitions/DisplayNewVisitorCentre. Taken October 2003.
June 1999 Pick currently on display in the Talking Tableaux.
Patent coaling pick of the sort illustrated in ‘Elementary Coal Mining’ Kerr, 1909, p 26 The pick head is removable so that blunt heads can be exchanged at the coal face rather than taken to the surface for resharpening every time. Then all the blunt heads would be taken up and sharpened at the end of a shift.