Is this a Playmobil boot jack?

[Martin Milner]

Is this Playmobil? If so, what set did it appear in? I couldn't find it on Playmodb.

I got it in a batch of eBay stuff including some distinctly non-Playmobil stuff, so it may well not be. The only identification in the moulding is a small number 1.

It looks like it might be a "boot jack", that is, a (usually) wooden gizmo designed to help remove muddy boots without getting the mud all over your hands.

In London we still have boot scrapers outside many Victorian and older houses (there's one outside my house). In the days of horse drawn transport, you definitely needed to scrape your boots before entering.

[sbblabotw]

A boot jack sounds like a very good use for it, especially if you only have one!  It's actually the thing that attaches the hammock to the post of the Pirate Hut, and you'd need two for that:

30 06 5790 - Hut Hammock Bracket

I only know this because I have a set with a hut: I'm not sure how you'd find it otherwise.

Yours is a better picture than the instructions: mind if I use it on the parts page?

[Timotheos]

I don't know what it is, but hey can you snap a photo of the bootscrape outside your house?

In Saint Charles old town, we have horse hitches along Main Street.  (But, I suspect they are re-creations...).

-Tim

[Sylvia]

Well spotted, Heather!
I had no idea what that part was.

Almost all of the houses in my street date from the Victorian era (ours included). The house directly opposite us has a bootscrape thingy built into the stone garden wall. One of my boys always seemed very curious about this built-in hole when he was little. Eventually I found out that he had assumed it was a mouse hole because of its arched shape. I don't think he found it quite so interesting once the neighbour explained what its real use was.

[Martin Milner]

Yours is a better picture than the instructions: mind if I use it on the parts page?

Of course Heather, you never need to ask!



There you go Tim - not very exciting, but it's all mine, bwa ha ha aha! 

I'll try to get a better shot in daylight if you want one.

[Timotheos]

That boot scrape is truly unusual!
I guess it was even more critical in the days before paved roads and side-walks became pervasive.

We have a weird practice of wearing our street shoes indoors.  I guess this goes back to the days of dirt flooring.

-Tim

[Richard]

Hello, Timmy ...

We have a weird practice of wearing our street shoes indoors.  I guess this goes back to the days of dirt flooring.

First, my compliments to Heather! (I have several pirate huts see attachment, and I know that I would have never recognized this part.)

Second, regarding the wearing of "street shoes" in the house ... Both of the  Islands where we have homes (Vancouver Island and the Virgin Islands), have the wonderful custom of removing your shoes before entering someone's home (including your own).

When we visit the mainland, we always wonder why it's not the custom there as well. It just makes so much sense!

All the best,
Richard

[Sylvia]

When we visit the mainland, we always wonder why it's not the custom there as well. It just makes so much sense!

You just reminded me of an episode of "Curb Your Enthusiasm" wear Larry is invited to a party at someone's home and is made to feel like a barbarian because he refuses to remove his shoes. Great show.

Here's our neighbour's built-in bootscraper. I took this shot very quickly because hanging about too long would have aroused her curiousity. (It doesn't take much. )

[Richard]

Hello, Sylvia ...

Here's our neighbour's built-in bootscraper. I took this shot very quickly because hanging about too long would have aroused her curiousity. (It doesn't take much. )

With her front door wide open, it would appear that she is "at the ready" to catch you "snooping" ...

It also appears (from the flowers in her garden), that you are enjoing an early Spring?

And, one final comment ... Sylvia, I know how much you hate spelling errors. Can you spot the one that you made in your post? ...  (You so seldom make any errors that I just couln't help it. The devil made me do it.) ...

All the best,
Richard

[Sylvia]

With her front door wide open, it would appear that she is "at the ready" to catch you "snooping" ...

It's fairly common in my part of town to have your outer front door open if you're at home. (Makes it much easier to answer visitors or accept deliveries.) With six kids, there's so many people coming and going in our house that the only time we shut ours is when we go away on holiday.

It also appears (from the flowers in her garden), that you are enjoing an early Spring?

That side of the street gets more sunshine than ours, so the spring bulbs usually shoot up sooner than they would in our own garden. I have seen some crocuses along the banks of the Ness River but no daffs as yet. It's still quite cold here but I'm pleased to say the sunshine is starting to make more frequent appearances.

And, one final comment ... Sylvia, I know how much you hate spelling errors. Can you spot the one that you made in your post? ...   

Er... could it be my referring to the house as belonging to a neighbour when it's actually directly opposite and not alongside ours? Hmmm... I guess that's not really a spelling error.