A painting by the Scottish artist John Burr (1831-1893). Tinkers were originally tinsmiths or "tinners". One of many itinerant jobs pursued by a class of casual laborers. These were mostly skilled and specialized crafts like basket making, shoe repair, leather work, and metal work but many poorer workers were migrant farm labor picking hops and … Continue reading “The Travelling Tinker” by John Burr
Tag: tinner
The Tinsmiths, 1763
Stump anvils, stakes, hammers, lamps, mandrel, soldering iron, and other goodies galore. Diderot never missed a lick and this is as good as any. From Diderot and D’Alembert 1763 Encyclopedia of Sciences, Arts and Trades. One of my favorite resources.