Material : Iron, dated 1660.
Attributed to the Saugus (Massachusetts) Ironworks.
Descended in the Bartlett family.
Iron backs, known today as fire backs, were set at the rear of hearths to protect the
bricks from heat damage and reflect heat into the room. Iron backs were made by
pressing a carved wooden pattern into sand, then pouring the molten iron into the
depression.
This iron back came from the house of Joseph Bartlett in Manomet (South
Plymouth). The house was built in 1660, the year of Bartlett's marriage.
