This beech cane or walking stick has a simplistic open fist at the top that can be screwed tight, driving the top of the cane toward the curled fingers in the hollow of the fist. The device is intended to serve as a nutcracker, the nut being placed in the empty hollow then the fist being twisted tightly back onto the top of the cane, the force of it cracking the shell open for consumption.

Weight (Lbs): 0.5
Height (In.): 34.25"
Width (In.): 2"
Depth (In.): 1.75
Size: 408.5 x 4.0 x 4.0"
Maker: Unknown
Material: Beech
Date: 19th C.
Provenance:
Condition: Some patination of the wood, small amounts of rubbing.
History: Canes were a popular accessory to the fashion minded far more than as an actual ambulatory aid during the 18th and 19th Centuries, dying out as a stable by the early 20th Century. Interestingly, the size of the ferrule, the metal cap on the base of a cane, is a fairly accurate measure of dating the cane, as by the 18th century, it began to shorten with the advent of maintained road systems and paved paths.