Original Items: One Set Only. This set of manacles with padlock are known to have come out of COMPTON HALL in Fakenham, Norfolk, which was built in the 1600s. It was also once owned by the ASTOR family late in the 19th century. These are original iron hand cuffs so to speak, consisting of a iron cross bar with a knob on one end and a slot on the other end to accommodate the small padlock which is present but missing the key. There are two “U” shaped hoops with holes on the end, through which the cross bar is inserted securing the prisoner’s wrists.
Many great houses in England derived their fortunes from the Slave trade in the 17th and 18th centuries, and many of these wealthy landlords were Justices of the Peace so perhaps it should be no surprise to find such items tucked away in Compton Hall or any other of England’s great houses. Whatever their original use, being it Slavery or the local poacher, these are absolutely genuine to the late 1700s or very early 1800s. They have some surface rust, which we have left intact to preserve the authentic “well-aged” look. The lock has a brass case, but the internals are all iron/steel, so most likely it is rust frozen.
Cannot be used as padlock key is absent but ready to display.