refaha.blogg.se - Irish cane shillelagh

Sanding those thorns leaves a nubby¸ knotty appearance that immediately marks this walking stick as a high-quality blackthorn cane. Shillelaghs designed from it use only straight lengths of stout blackthorn wood with spiny thorns covering it. Indeed¸ its strong association with Ireland is still the shillelagh’s most identifying feature.īlackthorn became the wood of choice due to its beauty and durability. Knowing this, an English writer is credited with first naming the Irish blackthorn walking stick. It is from these trees that the first shillelaghs were made. Initially called an Irish bata¸ or fighting stick¸ it takes its current name from the Shillelagh Forest in County Wicklow¸ Ireland¸ whose claim to fame was once its many massive oak trees. They still don’t answer exactly what it is.įirst¸ a shillelagh is a quite specific type of knotty walking stick. Yet these details demonstrate only the reasons that a shillelagh is different from other canes or walking sticks.

They also explain why shillelaghs have become such cherished collectors’ items. Add to that where the wood comes from¸ along with how its Irish fighting-club history made this walking stick a distinctive part of Irish culture and heritage¸ and all these details begin to provide you with a fairly good idea of what goes into a shillelagh. For example, besides the unique wood, the particular way an authentic Irish blackthorn walking stick is designed separates it from all other canes. In fact¸ even among blackthorn canes¸ there are certain details that identify a genuine Irish shillelagh.

It also makes the best quality shillelagh. While you may find a shillelagh for sale designed from ash¸ oak or holly¸ blackthorn wood is a traditional Irish choice. Specially designed¸ it has a rich Irish history that makes it unlike any other walking stick. That’s because there’s nothing ordinary about a shillelagh. Irish Blackthorn Walking Sticks & ShillelaghsĪn ordinary walking stick is often called by many names¸ but not one of those names is shillelagh.

All thorns and spurs that have been completely removed should leave behind a fine dimple in the wood.

If made by a craftsman familiar with the creation of shillelaghs¸ the cane should come to a fine taper.

Knobs or protrusions left from the thorns should be spaced evenly around the shaft of the blackthorn cane.

Hawthorne looks very similar¸ but lacks the uniformity of blackthorn¸ and will usually have many irregularities in the wood grain.

Here are four tips to check and be sure that any shillelagh is of high quality: We guarantee our shillelaghs are authentic Irish blackthorn walking sticks and canes, but many other retailers sell imitations crafted from hawthorn or other thorny bushes and trees. These thorns are removed in the process of finishing and sanding a walking cane shaft¸ but the dark wood and numerous knots and protrusions are left behind as a signature of the plant from which the authentic Irish blackthorn walking cane came. It is a very hard¸ close-grained wood¸ and if harvested from the trunk of the blackthorn tree¸ any sample should be covered in sharp¸ vicious spines. Authentic Irish Blackthorn Walking SticksĪlso known as European Spiny Plum (Prunus spinosa)¸ this hardwood plant offers all of the qualities a cane-maker wants in his materials.