Help with identifying these antique keys, or their locks?

[Engineer]

I had these antique keys since I was a kid, but I've not been able find out much about them? The larger one is 10.25" long, the smaller one is in terrible condition, but spent many years outside on a farmhouse in Ireland I was told.



I would appreciate any help in finding out anything about tose types of keys, or if anyone knows a good group for antique keys and locks?

Thanks!

[dougfarre]

They are old keys, to old warded locks.

[dougfarre]

Wait i think that top one is a medeco?

[Legacy712]

I think the craftsmanship on the larger one is interesting, considering the age and that the wards in the lock must be similarly constructed.

[MacGnG1]

that big one is really cool

[Engineer]

I'm glad the reactions to the big key are favourable.
I saw it in a curio shop in the UK while on a holiday as a child. It was with a lot of old keys (that I couldn't afford),
but it fascinated me so much, that I paid over two weeks of pocket money for it (£4)
and left myself short of money for the whole of the holiday, but never regretted it for a moment.

I was always worried that I might have been ripped off,
but whether it's worth anything or not, I don't mind anymore as at least others seem to like it like I do.

That pretty much is all I know of it though!

[stimky666]

Well, that big one would be easy to make... well, the part that's not the handle or the keying part. All you'd have to do is heat the metal to orange hot, then stick it into a lathe, and spin it a few times. Then form the handle, heat the par tyou want to connect along with the part of the rod you want to connect, and stick them together, and hammer them a couple times. The final piece would be pretty easy with todays tools, but you'd have to take different sized metal rectangular prisms, and melt them together.

[raimundo]

The larger key may be mass manufactured, and is probably cast iron. or cast metal anyway. Dust some talcum or other white powder on it and things may appear, such as a code number stamped on it. These numbers are hard to distinguish from rust pitting until you powder the metal, then like a CAPTCHA they appear. The dust can be removed with a brush. I have found such numbers on old pitted blackened padlocks this way. Or a manufacturers mark.

Un clear from the photo, but the key probably is a 'barrel' key, meaning that the keyshaft has a hole in the tip and this is what it rotates around.

The lock would appear to be entirely warded, with perhaps a strong spring as such locks usually had. the bitting edge of the key shows no evidence of having levers to lift. There must be some period when warded locks were at a height of development, and levers were not yet common. My guess, since the key was found in the UK, that would have been about 200 years ago.

If the key were not mass manufactured, it would show some kind of tool traces, imperfections on the rounded areas that appear flat and the key bow does not appear to be hammer welded, the whole thing has the look of casting in a cope and drag sand cast method.