What Are These Things For? (21 pics)
Weird golden game. It had camel and lamb pieces.
A: Main tapal empat. A version of Sher-bakar, a tiger hunt game.
What is this? Text on it says it’s from 1858, made in Philadelphia.
A: An impossible bottle.
Switch on the back of an old clock labelled “Miracle Eye”. What is this?
A: It’s a light sensor called a photocell and is very cheap to make today.
Saw this on the side of a truck while driving. Was not able to get close enough to read what is says. Yellow box hanging by suction cup with wire to back of box. Two blinking red lights on it as well.
A: Mobile Retroreflectometer.
This was found in the sand at Lewes Beach, Delaware. It looks like it’s part of a mandible but unsure about that. Anyone recognize it?
A: Fish premaxilla, looks like some kind of a wrasse. Given the location, possibly a tautog/blackfish.
Small and lightweight, looks like it would function like a hatchet? What would be the benefits or use of this design over a regular hatchet?
A: It’s a brush axe. I believe it’s easier to work in tighter spaces caused by tree branches.
Found this helmet in my attic. I believe it to be real as it was with other official looking military garb. Anyone know what armed force or war era this is from?
A: WW2 US Army 16th corps.
Hand-sewn textiles I purchased at an auction. Anyone know what they are?
A: Mirror inlay work and embroidery from Rajasthan (thar desert region) in India. All handmade by the ladies in villages. Every thread is sewn by hand. It’s as real as it can get.
This is on my cream cheese today- just opened the container yesterday and it was fine.
A: It’s pink mold, do not eat! I know it doesn’t look like mold but this coloring is common in cream cheese (and some other soft cheeses) and is pretty bad for you if ingested.
In a warehouse about 9ft off the ground. Maybe something for temperature?
A: Definitely for temperature…RTD (Resistance Temperature Detectors) Use these at work, looks like a pt100 probe.
Some kind of machinery for liquid with lenses on two sides.
A: This is a spectroflourophotometer for spectroscopy.
Found this while metal-detecting an old homestead on Cheyenne Mountain.
A: Part of an old stove/fireplace. “Remove Ashes Daily” fits.
Anybody know what this is? Or approximate age? It’s made of aluminum and wood.
A: You put butter in it and set it on one of the bread slots in the toaster. The heat from the toaster would melt the butter.
Porcelain set with a weird dish, found in a box of misc old stuff at MIL’s house. The dish with the holes on the bottom do not go all the way through, so it would hold liquid.
A: It’s an old butter dish with a “drainer.” Condensation would form on cold butter, and this dish is designed to drain this liquid off so your butter doesn’t turn into a watery mess.
Flexible gray sealer along exterior of house between concrete landing and exterior brick
A: Sika brand, urethane > silicone. Sounds good. Looking it up now.
What is this? I found this and several similar looking things in a crawl space. They’re all made of metal (I’m pretty sure).
A: “ВОРОШИЛОВГРАДУ” translates to Voroshilovgrad. That town is now known as Luhansk /Lugansk, though. That “175 ЛЕТ” means “175 years old”. It’s a commemorative medal of some sort. Starting at 6 o’clock and the little star, and working clockwise around. And it’s a 175-year commemorative medallion.
I have what I think is a very old Modem in my possession for a long time, but I’m not sure what it is for.
A: Dialogic telephony cards.
Found it in my new place i worked at and nobody else knows what is this, 150cmX80cmX35cm, and has “Grundig” written inside.
A: Not just for records, it’s a Grundig Musiktruhe. Incredible popular in the 60’s and early 70’s in Northern Europe.
Looks like some kind of dried slug ? About 5 cm long, and there is some powder from it underneath. Im in the south of france if that helps.
A: It looks like Rust (fungus) and white, powdery mildew. The plant tissue grows larger because it’s infected.
These things arrived along with an office bag, the endings seem to be metallic.
A: They are called Shaker Pegs, used for coat racks and such.
Drove past this today, in a suburban neighbourhood. Just sitting there on a trailer in the street, wasn’t moving but looks like it might be able to.
