old lever padlock with barrel key in mint condition

[femurat]

I've been on a three days trip and visited a medieval and fortified hamlet close to Biella, in the north of Italy.
You can imagine my surprise when I found a padlock for sale among other old stuff. I got it for 15 euro, a good price for such a nice padlock.
The logo is strange, looks something mystical where the sun symbolize god, and instead of the usual eye in the center there are three padlocks. I guess it's a reference to the trinity. It may be an antique symbol with a meaning or just an inspired designer who invented the logo. Any info about it is more than welcome.

Cheers

[verz]

Cool looking lock, looks like it belongs on a monastery door. The sun and 3 - unlocks the magic door full of virgin nuns..? or... just the kitchen pantry full of cabbage.

[GWiens2001]

@verz

I think you mean a convent. Know what you mean by the lock looking like it belongs there, too.

By the way, do you know why they have such high walls (and locks like this) around a convent??? Because when they say 'Nun', they mean it.

Gordon

[rai]

Actually while the paint is somewhat chipped, I doubt that it is real old, it looks like a modern manufacture of an old type of lock.
Not a repro or some retro antique, but an actual lock of the old pattern, this old pattern hung around for a long time after pin tumblers started eating its market, but locks will always appeal to those who like the old types. They still use lever locks on doors in some countries. This is probably because locks are a tradition as well as a utility. and people trust the old stuff

[femurat]

Well, at least I'm not the only one who see these as religious symbols.

Rai I'm quite sure this is an old padlock. How old it is? Dunno, for sure it's not from 1800... I think it's from the first half of 1900.
I'm still waiting for some hint about this padlock history if an expert stumble upon this page.

Cheers

[rai]

the symbol is coined into the metal, and therefore reproduces some very fine lines, the body of the lock appears to be a stamping, but not the type clamshell and rivets with the seam visible on the edge as some of the old lever locks were

I think that the case is two pieces of metal formed in a punch press, I also speculate that the two halves of the case are fitted so that one can be pressed down into the other, similiar to a cardboard box with a fitted cover, this can then be sealed any number of ways, crimping like a can of food, or having parts of one side fit into slots on the other side, it could even be soldered.
The posts inside the keyhole must be welded or soldered
I do not see any pin driven in to hold the parts together, though the back side is not very visible
paint is well worn off the shackle, and only slightly on the keyhole area, this seems to indicate that it was probably locked on some hasp where it spent a long time with very seldom being opened.

really what makes me call this modern is the stamping and the coining of the symbol, the paint and the lack of rivets.
However what modern or antique means to femurat, I don't know, I had a 64th birthday on dec 6 so my idea of modern is probably different from femurats. On the other hand femurat lives on a continent full of antiques so, well theres a location specific reality of what is considered antique.
In pennnsylvania, antique can mean several hundred years old, in alaska, antique could easily mean things less than a hundred years old, and in italy, .....they probably have a different way of looking at it.

[GWiens2001]

Happy belated birthday, Rai! Hope it was good.

Gordon

[selim]

don't know much about symbols ; but that is cool, the key even cooler.

It was for a chasidey belt.

3 men had the key, 17 women wore the belt.

lenth of line represents the girls age.

That's my take on it -

[GWiens2001]

Gordon

[femurat]

I like how you think, selim

Hey rai happy birthday! Sorry I'm late. Is there a piece of cake left?
I think modern means today, old means older than me, antique means a lot older than old, if it makes sense.
Anyway, you're right about the padlock, there are no visible rivets or holes or soldering signs on the outside. The padlock body looks a thin layer of steel, deep-drawn should be the right term to describe the process I think they used to make it.
The body looks made of two parts, pressed together and then held in place by deforming the outer part end.
The front is solid and has a bend on the edge. The back part is clearly inserted inside the front one.
I made a few more pictures to show the back and the sides.

Cheers

[rai]

Yup, thats what I call relatively modern manufacture, meaning they used a punchpress. the manufacturing techniques are modern but the basic mechanism is traditional with some individual variations, I suppose.

On another note, are the locks called scandanavian as a generic type, from about a hundred years ago precursors of the abloy,
or are they simply warded padlocks, I had the idea that the abloy type may have been around before the company that perfected it came about.
Anyone from finland likely knows the answer.