Fun: help ID this old forged mystery item found under my house
 

I was excavating under my kitchen to do foundation repair and found miscellaneous old junk thrown into the back fill when the house was made (~80-100 years ago). Stuff like old bottles, broken tools, cans.

Most of the back fill seems to be foundry waste - course clinker chunks. (There was a major foundry in this town way back when, and I guess clinker was readily available, and the foundry was happy to get rid of it.)

But this mystery bit of forged hardware looks hand-made - not foundry produced.

Everyone I've showed it to is stumped. Any ideas??

https://ecomodder.com/forum/attachme...1&d=1623093650

https://ecomodder.com/forum/attachme...1&d=1623093650

https://ecomodder.com/forum/attachme...1&d=1623093650

This hole looks like it may have been square originally. Corners filled in with rust? For a carriage bolt?

https://ecomodder.com/forum/attachme...1&d=1623093650

The outer holes are beveled on this side (for counter-sunk screws?).The middle hole looks simply punched through.

Some elaborate handle?

It's the spraxial entubacricizer from a turbo encabulator.

I was going to say coat hook, but let's go with samwichse's theory.

Stirrup? But that's pretty heavy gauge for that use..

I mean seriously, it seems like a carriage bolt was meant to go through the two aligned holes. Two chamfered holes mean the plate part was mounted to wood, but to the inside? So the carriage bolt would have gone through the wood. No idea.

Yup, the two countersunk screws seem to be on the wrong side.

Maybe that's why they threw it out. :-D

My first thought was coat hook, then sturrup. I've got no other ideas.

Pipe hangar. It nails to the stud or joists from the outside between studs or joists They didn't have plumbers tape back then and cast iron is easy to cast and cheap. Spacing is about right for actual 2x4. Center hole is for vertical use keeping pipe in place

Interesting. But I'd think a pipe hangar would be a high volume, mass-produced item. This looks handmade.

(Then again, horseshoes were handmade...)

With the proper investment casting you could do maybe 10-20 at a time since there would not be an appearance requirement.

Not sure a cast iron horseshoe would hold up very long. The important part of blacksmithing is removing the carbon by reheating and impact welding

cast iron key for small manhole ( water meter )cover removal
 

The small 'T' in inserted into the slot on the cover, cover is rotated to disengage dogs, then the cover can be safely lifted and removed without dropping.
Water meters can be read. Water shutoff valves can be accessed. Keeps kids like me out.;)