HandForged Ironmongery Articles

As the name suggests, the Suffolk latch originated in the county of Suffolk in the East of England. It predates the similar Norfolk latch but differs from it in that the thumb piece or thumb plate, the lever that passes through the door and raises the latch bar, or lifter, off the keep, passes through the handle, or pull (you’ll note here that there are as many variations to the part names as there are designs of latch!).

In the Norfolk latch, the pull is mounted on a backplate and is independent of the thumb piece. The latch bar is usually mounted on the opening side of the door, the end of the thumb piece on that side invariably having a downward curve so as to act as a basic handle or else the latch bar has a knob to lift it by. To restrict the travel of the latch bar and to prevent it being levered off the door by accident, a staple is fixed across it, the points of which are driven straight through the door and clenched over to secure it fast.

Traditionally, rosehead nails would have been used to mount both the staple and the pull; they still are today but screws are also often used. Even though the Suffolk latch is more often than not an internal latch, most come with a locking pin that prevents the latch bar from moving for a bit of extra privacy. The Suffolk latch is commonly positioned at about two-thirds the height of the door.

Suffolk latches were first introduced around the end of the 16th century and were popular until well into the 19th century. Then, mass-production, ever the curse of the traditional artisan, brought cheaper, less complicated and more secure methods of closing and securing a door within the budget of the average household.

There were many different styles available and as always, the variations were only limited by the ingenuity and skill of the local smith. Most styles centred upon the designs for the cusps which are the mounting plates at the end of the pull and the mount for the latch bar. The shapes are easy to guess from the names they were given: penny, broad bean, heart, arrow, tear-drop, tulip, gothic etc. The thumb piece was invariably heart-shaped and slightly convex, as this was the most efficient and comfortable design for repeated use an early example of ergonomic engineering!

Hand forged Suffolk latches are one of the most evocative period pieces available to you if you are after recreating an authentic feel and atmosphere with your restoration project. There is a uniquely satisfying clanking sound as the thumb plate is depressed or the latch bar clicks into the notch of the keep. Moreover, the door acts as a soundboard, amplifying the noise around the room. Each door has its own unique sound, too, depending on its method of construction and quality of the timber used. Over the years you’l eventually get to know each one as it’s opened “and by whom“ almost as if each room has been given its own voice!

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A hinge can be defined as a mechanism allowing a door, gate or lid to swing on a fixed point or post. Early doors would open on pivot points or sockets but it was not until the skills of the metalworker allowed the manufacture of more precise mechanisms that could be affixed to the surfaces of the door and post that hinges as we know them today appeared about 3500 years ago. They were far more versatile, allowing better flush mounting and easier replacement or repair of the door. As such, they were first considered a luxury and would invariably be found on official buildings or places of worship.

Most hinges feature plate bent around a mandrel to form loops. The plate can be split and drawn out to form two or three loops that will interlock with another set of loops around a pin, one or both ends of which can be flattened. In Europe, the backs of the loops aren’t normally welded together as the thickness of the hand-forged metal is generally enough to cope with the anticipated load. The plates can be shaped or filed into various shapes with different load-bearing characteristics or decorative qualities. The plates are then punched with holes for the mounting nails or screws.

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Nails have been around ever since man started to work metal. The discovery of iron, tough and durable but more importantly more abundant than any other metal, helped to revolutionise construction methods as nails could now be produced in greater than ever numbers and allowed two pieces of wood to be joined together without the need for shaping a joint.

Over the centuries nails have been made in diverse shapes and sizes for many different applications and buildings can often be accurately dated by the types of nails used in their construction. Until about 500 years ago, hand-wrought nails were very labour intensive to produce and consequently became a valuable commodity rather than risk damaging the nails by pulling them from the woodwork, old buildings were often razed to the ground and the ashes sifted to remove the undamaged nails.

The manufacture of hand-forged nails followed much the same process for a couple of thousand years. Square-section rods of wrought iron were prepared by hand as the base material for nail making. In 1585 the water-powered slitting mill was invented, automating this particular process meaning that greater numbers of nails could be produced by a less-skilled workforce. The rods were re-heated in a forge by the blacksmith or nailer so he could taper the four sides towards a point at one end - hand-forged rose head nails always leave a square hole. The rod would then be cut to the required length and placed into a “nail header” or a hole of the right depth on the anvil and the head beaten out, either by using a mould or striking the head directly.

A traditional hand-forged rose head nail will have four facets to the head, forming a mildly irregular pyramidal shape. The term “rose head” appears to have become rather a generic one in recent times, being used to describe any number of rustic looking and predominantly flat-headed nail types, depending on the supplier. In the late 18th century machines for cutting nails from sheets of metal were developed obviating the need for hand-forging nails. Our renewed appreciation of traditional artisan craftsmanship has meant that authentically hand-forged rose head nails are enjoying a renaissance.

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The style we know as Gothic, one characterised by tall spires, vaulted roofs, pointed arches, trefoil windows and flying buttresses first appeared in France in the 12th century. It was known as French style or architecture and was almost exclusively used in ecclesiastical buildings. The term “gothic” was used as an insult by those inspired by the renaissance and the renewed interest in classical styles that spread across Europe from 15th century Italy. To be Gothic was to be unrefined and barbaric.

The term would be revitalised by the 19th century Victorians who used the style extensively for public buildings and monuments as well as churches. Pugin, Scott and Barry designed some of the most distinctive buildings from that era with the Houses of Parliament, The Albert Memorial and St Pancras Station among the most well known. Interior design embraced the same motifs that were used externally. Much use was made of open tracery, trefoil and quadrafoil patterns, columns and arches. Nothing was left untouched; finials, door handles, escutcheons, sconces, anything that could be designed and fabricated was given the gothic touch.

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