DOI Artikel:
Fenton, Alexander: The Cas-chrom: a review of the Scottish evidence
DOI Seite / Zitierlink: https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.48999#0141
THE CAS-CHROM
A Review of the Scottish Evidence
Alexander Fenton
It would be a matter of great interest to plot
cartographically the distribution of the spade
in Europe in relation to that of the plough. To
some extent, this would reflect the nature of
the terrain, but other factors would also play
a part. In areas like the Shetland Islands, where
in the late eighteenth century the spade largely
replaced the plough (Fenton 1962-3. 307), a
historical process can be observed in which the
spade and a method of working it in teams
(usually of three or four people) became a sub-
stitute for the plough. In other places like the
better arable areas of Eastern Norway, Den-
mark and Sweden, the spade was a substitute
for a plough amongst poor people in medieval
times, the two kinds of implement complement-
ing each other across the social strata. In such
cases the spade was a “surrogate” or substitute
(Erixon 1956. 88).
A map or set of maps of this kind (which
would have to be filled out by including the
distribution of cultivating implements of mat-
tock type), with supporting commentary, would
show the influence of geographical, social and
economic factors, and would underline the fact
that direct comparison between areas is not al-
ways possible at the simple level of form or
even existence in response to terrain. Social fac-
tors of a much less predictable nature can also
play a strong part.
A special section of this map, hypothetical
for the time being, would relate to implements
of the type of the caschrom which, though fre-
quently called a “footplough”, is nevertheless
to be accepted as a spade, for which a term
such as “push spade” (Loch 1820. 41) would be
more fitting. The Gaelic name caschrom is fre-
quently anglicised as “crooked spade” in the
topographical literature. Though this section of
the map might include the Scottish caschrom,
the Irish loy, the Faroese haki, and the Nor-
wegian krokspade or nabbespade, nevertheless
these differ considerably from each other, and
their links lie more in the circumstances of ter-
rain that necessitated cultivation with them on
raised “lazy-beds” accompanied by drainage
ditches. Though some writers tend to lump
these implements together (cf. Eriksson 1971.
446), nevertheless the straight, short, symme-
trical Faroese haki can scarcely be regarded as
an implement similar to the long, crooked
caschrom with its protruding foot-peg (cf. av
SkarSi 1970. 67-69 for the haki). The Irish and
especially the Norwegian forms, however, are
closer to the caschrom, and since these imple-
ments are in form functionally well adapted to
the undercutting and levering up (but not lift-
ing) of turf, it may also be valid and valuable
to look at the caschrom not only in relation to
cultivating spades, but also turf-cutting spades.
The suggestion was made several years ago
that the caschrom took its place in the series of
one-sided cultivating- and turf-spades (Camp-
bell 1944. 234), but this is a thesis that remains
to be developed, and the present notes are in-
tended to review the Scottish evidence without
entering into much discussion of the wider
issues.
As discussed in a previous article (Fenton
1962-3. 313), the caschrom is confined in its
A Review of the Scottish Evidence
Alexander Fenton
It would be a matter of great interest to plot
cartographically the distribution of the spade
in Europe in relation to that of the plough. To
some extent, this would reflect the nature of
the terrain, but other factors would also play
a part. In areas like the Shetland Islands, where
in the late eighteenth century the spade largely
replaced the plough (Fenton 1962-3. 307), a
historical process can be observed in which the
spade and a method of working it in teams
(usually of three or four people) became a sub-
stitute for the plough. In other places like the
better arable areas of Eastern Norway, Den-
mark and Sweden, the spade was a substitute
for a plough amongst poor people in medieval
times, the two kinds of implement complement-
ing each other across the social strata. In such
cases the spade was a “surrogate” or substitute
(Erixon 1956. 88).
A map or set of maps of this kind (which
would have to be filled out by including the
distribution of cultivating implements of mat-
tock type), with supporting commentary, would
show the influence of geographical, social and
economic factors, and would underline the fact
that direct comparison between areas is not al-
ways possible at the simple level of form or
even existence in response to terrain. Social fac-
tors of a much less predictable nature can also
play a strong part.
A special section of this map, hypothetical
for the time being, would relate to implements
of the type of the caschrom which, though fre-
quently called a “footplough”, is nevertheless
to be accepted as a spade, for which a term
such as “push spade” (Loch 1820. 41) would be
more fitting. The Gaelic name caschrom is fre-
quently anglicised as “crooked spade” in the
topographical literature. Though this section of
the map might include the Scottish caschrom,
the Irish loy, the Faroese haki, and the Nor-
wegian krokspade or nabbespade, nevertheless
these differ considerably from each other, and
their links lie more in the circumstances of ter-
rain that necessitated cultivation with them on
raised “lazy-beds” accompanied by drainage
ditches. Though some writers tend to lump
these implements together (cf. Eriksson 1971.
446), nevertheless the straight, short, symme-
trical Faroese haki can scarcely be regarded as
an implement similar to the long, crooked
caschrom with its protruding foot-peg (cf. av
SkarSi 1970. 67-69 for the haki). The Irish and
especially the Norwegian forms, however, are
closer to the caschrom, and since these imple-
ments are in form functionally well adapted to
the undercutting and levering up (but not lift-
ing) of turf, it may also be valid and valuable
to look at the caschrom not only in relation to
cultivating spades, but also turf-cutting spades.
The suggestion was made several years ago
that the caschrom took its place in the series of
one-sided cultivating- and turf-spades (Camp-
bell 1944. 234), but this is a thesis that remains
to be developed, and the present notes are in-
tended to review the Scottish evidence without
entering into much discussion of the wider
issues.
As discussed in a previous article (Fenton
1962-3. 313), the caschrom is confined in its