This iron was used by women, in their domestic role, to press the clothes from the mid 19th century. Coal embers were put inside, heating the base of the iron, to press the family's clothes and linen. Small bellows were used to fire up the embers to keep the iron hot. In the Kiewa Valley the embers would have been from the local hard wood growing on the farms.Ron White worked for the SEC on the Kiewa Hydro Electric Scheme. The iron belonged to his mother. Ron remembers being a boy of approximately 8 years of age, watching his mother do her ironing with this charcoal iron in the c1920s.This iron is made of cast iron. It has a hinged lid so that coal embers can be put inside for heat. The lid has a curved funnel. Bellows are used to blow air into the iron and keep the coals burning. It has a wooden handle and a lever (also with a wooden handle) to open the lid. There is a 2 and a half centimetre hole at the back of the iron to check the coals. The hole has a swivel cover.There is an embossed "S" on the swivel cover.iron, laudry, household, charcoal, antique, domestic, pressing clothes