Dutch ‘mangelplank’

A ‘mangelplank’ is a typical Dutch object, which was used in combination with a wooden stick (‘mangelstok’) to dry small linen ware. The linen was rolled around the stick and the ‘mangelplank’ was rolled back and forth over de stick, in order to press water and wrinkles out of the cloth. The flat side of the board was used for this process, however the other side was often decorated. This way the ‘mangelplank’ could be nicely displayed on the wall after its use.

The present ‘mangelplank’ (ca. 1850) is made from oak and decorated with detailed high relief woodcarvings. The surface is divided into five square planes, in which a coat of arms and several animals  are depicted, such as a horse,  a deer and a unicorn. The edges of the squares are decorated with small pieces of ebony marquetry, creating lovely frames for the carvings. The top of the ‘mangelplank’ is artfully crafted with cut-outs and decorated with medallions. The bottom of the ‘mangelplankl’ is decorated as well, with a woodcarving of the Dutch lion.