Why is there a handle attached to this brick wall?

June 15, 2010 4:11 AM

Why is there a handle attached to this brick wall?

This brick wall is about 2 feet high, it marks the end of someone's front garden. Why would there be a brick which has a iron handle attached to it? What would be the purpose of this?

Picture: http://www.flickr.com/photos/nufkin/4702416237/

posted by Nufkin to Home & Garden (15 answers total)

Tying up a dog by the leash?
posted by Fiasco da Gama at 4:24 AM on June 15, 2010

Our house used to have such a handle for securing bikes.
posted by beniamino at 4:25 AM on June 15, 2010

The wall was built with recycled bricks from some other structure, and that one just happened to have a handle on it for some reason?

Is it low enough to use for scraping mud off your boots/shoes?
posted by EndsOfInvention at 4:39 AM on June 15, 2010

old people sometimes install handles to help them with activities... like getting out of cars (some of which have low seats). Just a thought.
posted by jannw at 4:50 AM on June 15, 2010

art?
posted by molecicco at 4:51 AM on June 15, 2010

Is it a historic area? Would it have been used to maybe tie a horse to?
posted by kaudio at 4:52 AM on June 15, 2010

Before looking at the picture I would have said for chaining up a bike as well. However, that wall looks pretty old for that. And a bit too low for tying a horse to. So perhaps dogs. Either way, it is almost certainly for tying something to so it doesn't wander off or get nicked.
posted by ninebelow at 5:16 AM on June 15, 2010

The holes in the handle indicate it is attached with screws, which makes it seem much newer than the wall itself. If it was original to the wall, it would have likely been embedded in the mortar. I think it could have been used to chain up a bench for sitting, or a bicycle, or if it was in my neighborhood, a barbecue grill.
posted by orme at 5:55 AM on June 15, 2010

Thomasson?
posted by oulipian at 5:58 AM on June 15, 2010

Response by poster: Thanks everyone. I think it is too low for a horse, but maybe for tying a dog. But if you are that close to your house would you really still tie you dog to your front wall?

@orme: Yes, it is attached with screws.

I will keep an eye on it over summer to see if anything gets tied to it. Maybe i'll get lucky and meet the owner of the house.
posted by Nufkin at 5:59 AM on June 15, 2010

Best answer: I think it's obviously a handle for opening the secret door in that wall; one would probably need to know the proper incantation as well. Said secret door probably opens onto another dimension, so be careful if you go experimenting--you're likely to run into eldritch horrors and shining dodecahedrons, maybe some gurgling rock formations . . . I HATE those. Anyway, have fun exploring! Let us know, assuming you get out alive and not gibbering, how the adventure went.
posted by miss patrish at 9:03 AM on June 15, 2010 [3 favorites]

I'll spell out what I meant and won't make any Dylan references. Street Art.
posted by Elmore at 9:21 AM on June 15, 2010

Best answer: It's so you can pick the wall up more easily.
posted by The otter lady at 10:35 AM on June 15, 2010 [6 favorites]

It's a drawer for David Bowie's makeup in the labyrinth.
posted by ShadePlant at 10:42 AM on June 15, 2010 [1 favorite]

I'm going to assume that it's not art, because it would be sucky.
It seems like it could provide 3 basic classes:
- To insert something: Signpost..
- To anchor something non permanent & non secure: Rope across road, finish line for race..
- To lock or chain something up. This could range from a bike to fruit cart to newspaper box. Given that it doesn't look very hefty, I'd tend towards less valuable items that you simply want to make more difficult to move, like the aforementioned newspaper box.
posted by Jack Karaoke at 10:46 AM on June 15, 2010