Burnisher & Scraper

Burnishers and scrapers were inseparable tools because, like the brace and bit, they worked together in woodworking. By grasping the handles of the burnisher and pushing its steel rod over the scraper's blade, a razor-sharp burr on either side of the blade could be produced. The scraper was especially useful to cabinetmakers in finishing the surface of mahogany or other curled or cross-grained hardwood. The scraper cutter belonging to Nathaniel Dominy V was originally a saw blade, and its soft-maple handle is stamped in a serrated rectangle.

Below: Burnisher and scraper, 1800-1820. Wood; Iron; Steel. 10" (L) , 1.1" (W) , 1.1" (Diam). Museum purchase with funds provided by Henry Belin du Pont, 1957.0026.206 and 1957.0026.121