Talked to a museum curator about old forge marks

I was at the state history museum last week, and the curator saw my shop shirt. She showed me a 1700s axe head and said, "The maker's mark isn't just a signature, it's a promise it won't fail." I've always just stamped my initials, but it made me think about the weight of that promise. How do you guys think about your maker's mark today?

3 comments

3 Comments

elizabeth_williams3mo ago

That's a heavy way to look at it, isn't it? Makes you wonder if your own mark will mean anything in 300 years.

linda_clark1mo ago

Wait, hold on. Are you serious? That actually messed me up for a second. Like wait, the promise it won't fail isn't even about us, it's about some random person hundreds of years from now?? That's wild to think about. I never even considered that angle when I first read it. Kinda makes you realize how tiny your own problems are in the grand scheme of things. Dang.

spencer1993mo ago

Yeah that "promise it won't fail" line hits hard. Makes @elizabeth_williams' point about our marks lasting feel pretty real.