Mystery Objects Fact Sheet
Object 1: A dolly peg, used before the invention of washing machines to clean
laundry. The clothes would be put into a tub of hot water and then spun around
with the dolly peg. They were used in the Victorian period and continued to be
used in the early twentieth century. It is approximately 1 metre tall. Slide 2 shows
a dolly peg in use.
Object 2. A boot jack, used to removed boots by putting one foot on the back of
the bootjack to steady it whilst pulling the boot off the other foot using the loop.
This example is from the 19th century. It is approximately 40cm long.
Object 3. This is a pectoral cross from the Staffordshire Hoard. It is made of gold
with a precious garnet stone in the centre. It would have been worn around the
neck, possibly by priest or bishop. The cross is approximately 6 and a half cm from
top to bottom and 5 cm across. It dates from the 7th century AD. Slide 5 shows an
artists impression of the cross being worn by an Anglo-Saxon priest.