Historical information

This cutter is thought to date to the early or middle period of the twentieth Century, but it has no identifying brand or inscriptions. It may have had several uses in the kitchen of the early-to-mid twentieth Century. Its primary use may have been cutting lattice pastry tops for pies, but it could also have been used to chop herbs or to make psta shapes such as spaghetti. It is an example of the increasingly specialised labour-saving devices available to home cooks which in turn reflects the changing social and economic structures of the period.

The cutter is an example of the increasingly specialised devices available to home cooks in a period of kitchen and household innovation beginning in the Nineteenth Century and continuing through the Twentieth Century. This reflects broader cultural and economic trends such as the growth of the middle class in society (households in which specialised devices replaced specialist workers such as a hired cook) and the growth of manufacturing of commercial goods as a basis of the economy.

Significance

This item is significant as it provides insights into the cooking equipment and techniques in use in the region in the early-to-mid twentieth century. As such, it also provides insights into the shifting social and economic conditions of the time period.

Physical description

The item is a metal roller with ten blades. It has a partial blade cover on the upper surface of the item and a continuous loop of metal shaped into a handle for the user to hold while using the item.