Antique toolbox: Can you guess what this vintage tool was used for?

Brothers George and Henry Landis collected all sorts of tools that 18th- and 19th-century Pennsylvania German farmers used in the past. Their collection is the foundation of Landis Valley Village & Farm Museum.

This mystery tool is part of that collection; do you know what it was used for?

Landis Valley Museum chief curator, says this object is 34 3/4 inches in height, 31 1/4 inches in width and 3 1/2 inches in depth.

If you think you know its purpose, send your guess to Mary Ellen Wright at features@lnpnews.com, with “Antique Toolbox” in the subject line, or mail to Mary Ellen Wright/Antique Toolbox, LNP Media Group, P.O. Box 1328, Lancaster, PA 17608-1328.

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Important: Please include your full name and the town you live in with your guess.

Guesses are due by Monday, Nov. 13. We’ll reveal the correct answer in LNP and on LancasterOnline on Nov. 24.

Landis Valley Village & Farm Museum is at 2451 Kissel Hill Road in Manheim Township.

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October traditions

Friday night, Oct. 27, Landis Valley is offering a tour titled “Harvest, Death & Renewal: The Late October Traditions of the Pennsylvania Germans.”

Those taking the tour, which is offered twice, at 6:30 and 8:30 p.m., will walk around a cemetery, learn about Pennsylvania German funeral and burial customs and hear scary tales.

There will be light refreshments at this program, designed for adults and older teens. Reservations are requested; tickets are $35. For more information on this and other Landis Valley programs, visit landisvalleymuseum.org.

Last month's mystery tool:

A wooden pattern for a bottle mold

Last month’s mystery tool from the Landis Valley Village & Farm Museum drew some great guesses — but no correct ones.

Royer says that the antique tool is a pattern for a bottle mold.

The pattern has a ring around the neck, about 2 inches down from the top, Royer says, but, otherwise, the mold is plain.

— Best guesses: carver’s mallet, wooden maul, feed scoop, potato masher, stuffer for a food grinder or mill.

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