Out Of The Blue Artifacts A Library of a lifetime of collecting
Beer Barrel Hardware.
A Beer Barrel Bung Collar and a Beer Barrel Tap.
The Bung Collar.
The bung collar is externally threaded and was screwed into a hole in the bilge at the side-middle of the beer barrel. It was used for access into the barrel for filling and cleaning. After a cleaning, the barrel would be re-filled and sealed with a wooden stopper called a bung which would be hammered into the collar.
The bung collar was designed to protect the filling and cleaning hole and allowing for repeated use without damaging the wooden stays of the barrel.
The bung collar is from the Webbs Brewery at Aberbeeg, it has the name of the brewery moulded around the outer rim in inverted text.
The Barrel Tap.
The tap would be inserted into a smaller hole in the lower part of the barrel and used for pulling beer from the keg. This design of tap has a diamond shaped turn-bolt which would be twisted using a beer tap key to regulate the flow of beer and turn the tap on and off. The tap is of a standard design not designated to a named brewery.
Both items are made from brass.
Size – The barrel bung collar is 3″ x 1″ inches with a tapered 2″ inch center hole. The beer tap is 7″ x 5″ x 1″ inches.
Dated – The beer barrel bung collar circa 1890-1900. The date of the barrel tap is unknown.
Points of Interest – The bung collar is marked with “JF” the connecting initials of the brass founder Mr John Fearn & Co of Sheffield, England.