# Mystery object my mom found in a west Tennessee field **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 2, 2015, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mystery-object-my-mom-found-in-a-west-tennessee-field/739192 "2015-12-02T05:57:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Willcross](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b2d939/32.png) [@Willcross](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Willcross)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mystery-object-my-mom-found-in-a-west-tennessee-field/739192/1 "2015-12-02T05:57:33Z")
My mom often walks in the field behind her house. Every time they plow it or after a hard rain, new objects are found. Yesterday she found a strange metal bracket. I’ve included a link to a photo of it with an ink pen for scale. It was found in the same area she found a 1921 Nehi soda bottle. So it may be from that time period. Any ideas on what this could be used for? [![Imgur](https://i.imgur.com/dSIW6qy.jpeg "imgur.com") ](https://imgur.com/dSIW6qy) ---
**Author:** ![GusNSpot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gusnspot/32/436_2.png) [@GusNSpot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GusNSpot)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 6:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mystery-object-my-mom-found-in-a-west-tennessee-field/739192/2 "2015-12-02T06:11:09Z")
Part of a counter weight scale?? ---
**Author:** ![Willcross](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b2d939/32.png) [@Willcross](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Willcross)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 9:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mystery-object-my-mom-found-in-a-west-tennessee-field/739192/3 "2015-12-02T09:06:54Z")
> [@GusNSpot](#): > > Part of a counter weight scale?? Hmm, maybe? That’s definitely an option we haven’t considered yet. We were thinking maybe it’s some kind of horse tackle or possibly the gas pedal from the Hindenburg. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 9:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mystery-object-my-mom-found-in-a-west-tennessee-field/739192/4 "2015-12-02T09:47:41Z")
It looks like it’s one end of something. Intended to be connected to the other end by planks or rods inserted through the holes or slots. Maybe part of some sort of rack? ---
**Author:** ![Blake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a9a28c/32.png) [@Blake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blake)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 10:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mystery-object-my-mom-found-in-a-west-tennessee-field/739192/5 "2015-12-02T10:03:26Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > It looks like it’s one end of something. Intended to be connected to the other end by planks or rods inserted through the holes or slots. Maybe part of some sort of rack? I was thinking some sort of treadle or connection rod. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mystery-object-my-mom-found-in-a-west-tennessee-field/739192/6 "2015-12-02T14:14:09Z")
> [@Blake](#): > > I was thinking some sort of treadle or connection rod. Perhaps one ont crossbeams gone out askew on treadle! Sorry, but that just popped into my mind. Other than that (or perhaps, including that) I got nothing. I didn’t expect the Spanish Inquisition. ---
**Author:** ![Ornery\_Bob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/da6949/32.png) [@Ornery\_Bob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ornery_Bob)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mystery-object-my-mom-found-in-a-west-tennessee-field/739192/7 "2015-12-02T15:21:07Z")
Boot jack? ---
**Author:** ![lance\_strongarm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/87869e/32.png) [@lance\_strongarm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lance_strongarm)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mystery-object-my-mom-found-in-a-west-tennessee-field/739192/8 "2015-12-02T15:39:25Z")
Boot scraper? It would be stuck in the ground or concrete in front of someone’s door so people could scrape the mud and horseshit off, like this one: [![](https://i.pinimg.com/736x/d6/59/45/d65945398ca72e1c1c288f7f94dbf90c.jpg) ](https://i.pinimg.com/736x/d6/59/45/d65945398ca72e1c1c288f7f94dbf90c.jpg) My only other guess is a bracket of some kind holding two pieces of wood together, like a rake or some other implement. ---
**Author:** ![Ignotus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/ecc23a/32.png) [@Ignotus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ignotus)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mystery-object-my-mom-found-in-a-west-tennessee-field/739192/9 "2015-12-02T15:55:05Z")
I think some neighbor is pulling a prank on your mother… > [@](#): > > It was found in the same area she found a 1921 Nehi soda bottle. According to [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nehi): > [@](#): > > Nehi /ˈniːhaɪ/ (pronounced “knee high”) is a flavored soft drink that originated in the United States. It was introduced in 1924 by Chero-Cola/Union Bottle Works. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mystery-object-my-mom-found-in-a-west-tennessee-field/739192/10 "2015-12-02T17:02:06Z")
Is that a hook at the top? ---
**Author:** ![Kimballkid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b5a626/32.png) [@Kimballkid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimballkid)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mystery-object-my-mom-found-in-a-west-tennessee-field/739192/11 "2015-12-02T17:51:41Z")
Maybe a yardstick would be a better scale definer than a pen. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mystery-object-my-mom-found-in-a-west-tennessee-field/739192/12 "2015-12-02T17:54:54Z")
You won’t believe this one weird thing a mom found! ---
**Author:** ![TSBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/77aa72/32.png) [@TSBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TSBG)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mystery-object-my-mom-found-in-a-west-tennessee-field/739192/13 "2015-12-02T17:59:14Z")
Part of a fireplace andiron set? ---
**Author:** ![SeldomSeen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7ba0ec/32.png) [@SeldomSeen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeldomSeen)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mystery-object-my-mom-found-in-a-west-tennessee-field/739192/14 "2015-12-02T18:21:13Z")
At a guess… it could be some kind of connector or buckle from a draft horse harness? ---
**Author:** ![lance\_strongarm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/87869e/32.png) [@lance\_strongarm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lance_strongarm)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mystery-object-my-mom-found-in-a-west-tennessee-field/739192/15 "2015-12-02T18:25:53Z")
> [@SeldomSeen](#): > > At a guess… it could be some kind of connector or buckle from a draft horse harness? Hmm, buckle. With slots for straps. That sounds promising. ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mystery-object-my-mom-found-in-a-west-tennessee-field/739192/16 "2015-12-02T18:30:22Z")
Is it cast iron? Or what? I think the best guesses so far, since it was found in a field that’s plowed, is some part of a harness. ---
**Author:** ![Corner\_Case](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/corner_case/32/234_2.png) [@Corner\_Case](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Corner_Case)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mystery-object-my-mom-found-in-a-west-tennessee-field/739192/17 "2015-12-02T18:34:12Z")
It looks like a green pen to me. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mystery-object-my-mom-found-in-a-west-tennessee-field/739192/18 "2015-12-02T18:36:02Z")
> [@bup](#): > > Is it cast iron? Or what? > > I think the best guesses so far, since it was found in a field that’s plowed, is some part of a harness. Yes, but would not a harness prat be curved? ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mystery-object-my-mom-found-in-a-west-tennessee-field/739192/19 "2015-12-02T18:38:26Z")
> [@SeldomSeen](#): > > At a guess… it could be some kind of connector or buckle from a draft horse harness? I came here to post this. It looks familiar to something I know I’ve seen the Amish using for plowing, but not as a harness… but plow attachment. Plow attachment . ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mystery-object-my-mom-found-in-a-west-tennessee-field/739192/20 "2015-12-02T18:49:57Z")
Are there any holes in the ends which are visible only in narrow side view? My hunch is that the picture is of the device in an upside down state. The hook would be the bottom. . [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mystery-object-my-mom-found-in-a-west-tennessee-field/739192.md?page=2)