P.W.BRAND early saw

Discussion in 'Forum: Saw Identification and Discussion' started by Underthedirt, May 9, 2018.

  1. Underthedirt

    Underthedirt Most Valued Member

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    225
    Hi everyone,


    I'm hoping (faintly) that someone out there may have some information about this maker, it appears to be stamped with P.W.BRAND twice, with a floral or wheel type device in the center.

    The plate is 16.5" long &with the ornate nib at the toe I would like to think that this is close to original.

    The handle has been repaired at some stage & the previous owner looks to have given the name stamp area a bit of a clean, this is as I found the saw, considering its age I think it carries its battle scars well.

    As you can imagine with a makers name like Brand, it makes it ridiculously difficult to search for a maker......grrrrrr!

    Any ideas on origin would be gratefully welcome.


    Regards


    Mari
     

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    David likes this.
  2. Force

    Force Active Member

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    36
    Hi Mari
    I'm of no help at all on the research of the makers, name, brand, wow that would frustrating. I'm no guru by any stretch of the imagination but I've never seen a saw like this and just have to pass coment " what a fascinating piece", very impressive and I'll take your word for it as an early saw. My first impression of it was someone's gone to the trouble of turning a hay knife into a saw and stuck a walking stick handle on it.
    Love it....Chris
     
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  3. Joe S

    Joe S Most Valued Member

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    Mari
    Magnificent. From the upturned curl on the toe to the mirror downturn of the handle. A keeper in any collection.
    No idea who P W Brand is. An early blacksmith? I don't know if a manufacturer would stamp it twice.
    but.... who cares, wouldn't part with that for any money,
    enjoy
    Joe S.
     
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  4. David

    David Most Valued Member

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    315
    Hi Mari,
    A fine looking Dutch saw with all the details; little hooked nib, crooked wooden handle with chip carving next to the ferrule (if that is one, I can't quite tell) and fully breasted toothline. Early is certainly the right word for it since it probably predates all of our English and American saws. Your saw till gets more international all the time. Congratulations on a rare one.
    David

    In looking at the enlarged image I can't see a ferrule, which these Dutch saws often had.
     
    Last edited: May 9, 2018
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  5. ray

    ray Administrator Staff Member

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    671
    Hi Mari,

    Looks identical to other Dutch saws from late 1600's, I found this chart on an obscure web site about saws :)

    [​IMG]
    It should be a fascinating research project to find out more about the maker, does the saw plate look to be hand forged rather than rolled sheet?
    Maybe there are Dutch trade directories, or similar commercial indexes that could help find this Brand!

    Ray
     
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  6. kiwi

    kiwi Most Valued Member

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  7. summerfi

    summerfi Most Valued Member

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    185
    Hi Mari and all,
    Your saw has the classic design of saws that are usually attributed as being of Dutch origin and dating from the late 17th to early 18th centuries. A google image search for "Dutch saw" shows several other examples. I found two that sold at auction for the neighborhood of $3000 each, so a nice find indeed. Perhaps it could be the case that the German stamp P.W. Brand was added at a later date when the saw was in that shop for repair or sale. One record I found said that P.W. Brand was founded in 1768, and I think it is quite possible your saw is earlier than that. Now for what I think is most interesting, I found a record of your exact saw being sold at auction by David Stanley on 30 Sept 2017. I don't know if you were the purchaser or if you acquired the saw somewhere else. It certainly appears to be the same saw though. The link to the auction is here.

    Bob
     
    Last edited: May 10, 2018
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  8. Underthedirt

    Underthedirt Most Valued Member

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    Thanks for all your replies...:)


    Chris- it does look like an old hay knife doesn't it?!


    Joe, the double stamping is unusual to me too.


    David, your eagle eyes did indeed pick out some chip carving in a ring around the handle, there is no ferrule on this one- maybe a 2nd quality saw? I'm attaching photos of another similar saw that I have with an ornate ferrule, it looks like that it may have a touch mark on the tang, but I'm not in a rush to clean it, looks like a fruitwood handle.


    Ray, the plate is totally beaten out rather than rolled & is uneven by modern saw standards.


    Kiwi- I've got to hand it to you, how you found that is magical! Thank you very very much! I searched & searched & searched & found nothing. That is the exact trademark & maker, I think that I will send Wolfgang Jordan an email with a couple of photos of the saw.


    Bob- an interesting idea about a repairer re stamping a tool- I'm sure that that could happen- advertising such services of the smith. I did purchase the saw from David Stanley along with the other that is posted on here below. The other auction that you mention perhaps was Laurent Adamowicz's tool collection? Some nice stuff in that auction!


    Kind regards


    Mari
     

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  9. ray

    ray Administrator Staff Member

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    671
    Hi Mari,

    Wow, not one but two of the earliest saws that you'd ever be likely to see. Truly a wonderful thing to see. Nice work by Kiwi to find the maker. Wolfgang Jordan is a member on here, and he would be the one to ask.

    Remscheid is not that far from the present Dutch border. ( 50 km or so ) So any similarities between Dutch and German made saws would not be surprising.

    Ray
     
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  10. Underthedirt

    Underthedirt Most Valued Member

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    225
    Thanks Ray, interesting that Remscheid is so close to the Dutch side & also the town has a history of toolmaking.
    I've written to Wolfgang via his P.W.BRAND page & also sent a link to this discussion, so we may hear from him.
    How fascinating, I really didn't think anything would turn up & then Kiwi posted that link.
    The "wheel" is actually a Sun & after seeing Wolfgangs page, you can see the eyes in the center of the Suns face, very cool.

    Regards

    Mari
     
  11. Wim Spijker

    Wim Spijker New Member

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    This is a characteristic Dutch hand saw was referred to in the Netherlands as a 'Poepenzaag' and was widely used in the Netherlands until the 18th century, sometimes even the 19th century.
    Czar Peter the Great from Russia trained as a ship's carpenter in the Netherlands. A saw like this has been preserved from him. It dates from 1697. The oldest images of such saws date from 1629.

    After 1800 the Industrial Revolution took place in England and improved the process of making cast steel. As a result, the English saws supplanted these Dutch saws.

    Initially they were made in the Netherlands, but later they were transferred to Westphalia.
    'Poepen' were the people from Westphalia (Germany). In the 18th century there were more than 20,000 blacksmiths making hand saws there. These were all concentrated in the town of Remscheid (near Wuppertal).This is also where the saw manufacturer Brand comes from. Founded in 1764. This brand is relatively common with this type of sawing.

    Whether the company still exists I don't know. Between 1974-1984 I did see saws of Brand hanging in shops. They were more hobby saws than professional handsaws.

    Many German tools still come from Wuppertal, such as Knipex pliers, Wiha and Wera screwdrivers. Until a few years ago also the very good Baier hand saws.