“What Is This Thing?” — 25 Times People Asked The Internet To Identify Mysterious Objects This Week

1. “What is this miniature fireplace with a lid? No”

Bought at a second hand market in Tunis, it seems to be vintage cast iron, approximately 10cm tall. The only opening it has is the top lid (found some similar looking lamp bases online, but these would have had a hole for a cable to pass through). Doesn’t seem to be a trinket box/storage because of the two screws that go through the inside – the top one approximately one third of the way, the bottom one connecting the front and the back.

Can you please help me figuring out what is this?

Solved By PacificCastaway:
It’s an inkwell.

Translation from French:
Gilt cast iron inkwell, a reproduction of heating products from the GODIN & CIE brand (Société du Familistère de Guise – Aisne). Model “Le Foyer Hygiénique” (The Hygienic Hearth), featuring a small inkwell cup located under the loading hatch at the top of the hearth. The handle also serves as a pen rest.

Featured in the Album Général de 1914 catalog, early 20th century.
Dimensions: length 11 cm, width 8 cm, height 12 cm.

Separate_Passenger58 (OP):
Solved! Thanks a lot!

2. “Metal coil found in my kids trick or treat bag.”

Metal spring/coil. Separates and can be re-connected by attaching ends.

Solved By lightningusagi:
It’s an acupressure massage ring. They’ve also been sold as fidget toys in recent years.

ElManuel93 (edited):
Yes, that’s right. Some people also use them to cope with anxiety since the slight pressure or pain can help ground them.

I’m a bit confused why someone would give it out with candy, though. My guess is it either slipped off the giver’s finger or accidentally ended up in the candy bowl.

It’s not dangerous, though it could be a choking hazard for small kids.

lupine_eyes (OP):
Solved! Thanks!

3. “Grey rubber/silicone seal/plug found in the boot of a Toyota Corolla (2004) approx 2 to 2.5cm wide, entire thing is squishy and pliable. No writing on it anywhere.”

Solved By vroom88:

It’s an electrical plug cover for a fuel pump assembly, used to protect the part during transport.

RedstoneRiderYT (OP):
Oh, I know exactly which plug you’re talking about! I think this is probably the answer. Is there any way you can confirm it? Do you work on these cars often? I really don’t feel like removing the back seats to test it, lol.

vroom88:
I work in the parts department at a Toyota dealership.

RedstoneRiderYT (OP):
I found a picture online — thanks! Solved!

4. “Green heavy canister, metal, very heavy. Found in the attic of old house along with some old bullets. Finland.”

What is this, and more importantly, what do I do with it?

Solved By Senior-Pie3609:
Reminds me of an early military smoke grenade or a smoke candle.

forevergleaning (OP):
I think you may be right. We were going to take it to the police station. I will update once we know what they say.

AnnaB264:
Do not take it to the police station. Call them and have them come to you. You do not want to risk evacuating a police station because someone brought a possible bomb.

forevergleaning (OP) update:
Thanks for all the comments. You convinced me not to take them in. I moved the canisters to a shed away from the house and will show the police pictures instead.

5. “Gun metal/brass clamp(?) Found in an engineer’s tool box.”

Solved By seamus_mc:
A version of this. Best Way Tools Stainless Steel Screw Holder

oll1921 (OP):
Solved!

GronanStormbringer33:
The old one looks like it was made way better than the stuff they make today.

6. “Large Metal Enclosure with Black Sloping Panel, Lock, and Vent”

Solved By disposable-assassin:
The black panel is a solar-powered utility meter or control unit, most likely for irrigation.

Views of the other sides might help, since it looks like there’s something on the top and possibly an information plaque.

The two vaults nearby look like fiberglass vault lids, which are commonly used for irrigation or landscape lighting. Given the setup and surrounding grass, irrigation is the most likely purpose.

CheeseCarbsAndSass (OP):
Solved!

7. “I found this in my yard. Soft rubber. Thought it might have come off one of my corded power tools, but I don’t remember ever seeing this.”

Solved By Rougaroux1969 (OP):
Solved! Thanks everyone. I looked around my garage for anything that might have held a pencil and that I’d used recently.

Diligent-Plant5113:
This might be the silliest invention I’ve seen in a while.

moeyjarcum:
Not at all. When I’m doing carpentry, I always keep a pencil behind my ear. If you’re wearing a headlamp, the strap makes that harder, so being able to snap it onto the strap instead is actually really convenient.

8. “Stainless steel object with an angled hooked end. Given as a gift.”

Solved By Helpful-Fruit-1404:
It’s a high-quality stainless steel spaghetti pasta measure tool with a hook — and honestly, that’s a more likely gift than a surgical tool.

LockjawTheOgre:
Because everyone needs a high-quality, stainless steel version of a tool no one actually needs.

Crix2007:
It costs 39 cents, so “high quality” might be a bit of an exaggeration.

MrMalta (OP):
Awesome! Thanks. Marking this as Solved!

9. “This metal tab with a threaded hole on the bottom, with a spring attached. Just under 2 inches long. Was found on top of a gas pump. What is it?”

Solved By itro479:

It’s a strut channel spring nut .

Both_WhyNotBoth:
Sparky got gas.

jeffersonairmattress:
We used to keep those in the armrest tray to hold pumps in place. I use a wooden wedge myself, but these young journeymen love their fancy tools.

MereCoincidences (OP):
Solved! That was quick, lol.

10. “I bought it at an auction in Germany and mistakenly thought it was part of a horse harness. Carved wood and metal. Old.”

Solved By Puzzled_Tinkerer:
This is a single hame from a horse harness. The design is typical of hames used in northern Europe and Scandinavia.

Here’s an example of a nearly identical pair:
https://live.pookandpook.com/online-auctions/pook/pair-of-norwegian-painted-horse-hames-etc-7101519

Puzzled_Tinkerer (edited):
The loop in the middle of the hame is where the trace attaches. The trace doesn’t control the horse—it connects the vehicle so the horse can pull it. The reins are what actually control the horse.

This particular hame has nothing to do with the reins. Some hames include a ring to keep them from getting tangled, but not this one.

For context, I have Norwegian Fjord horses and Norwegian-style harnesses, along with antique hames very similar to the one shown.

tintbao (OP):
Great, thanks very much.

Solved!

11. “Large cast iron part found on a hillside on a ranch, about 800′ from the road and 600′ from an abandoned railroad. About 2.5′ long, weighs 400+ lbs and has copper tubing inside”

Im clearing some land on a small ranch in the mountains of San Diego, CA and found this large heavy cast iron object on a hillside, about 800′ (uphill) from the road and about 600′ (also uphill) from an abandoned railroad. The family has been here for a long time, nobody knows what this this is. Its about 2.5′ long maybe 2′ tall and weighs over 400lbs. Has copper plates that say Fairbanks Morse and US Navy

Solved By Wish_Tricky:
It’s a centrifugal pump.

The shaft connects to a motor to move large volumes of water from one place to another.

timewastinbuttsmelly (OP):
Solved! Very cool, thank you!

I’m still wondering what it’s doing on this hill so far from everything — the closest well is about 800 feet away, and the nearest standing water is probably half a mile.

12. “Wire rack with raised ends & hooks”

Found this in my partner’s things. Neither of us know what it is. The rack has two raised ends with small hooks on both ends.

Solved By gretchens:
It’s a dish organizer for a cupboard. You can hang mugs from the hooks and place plates either underneath or on top.

lightupthesky8 (OP):
Solved! Thank you!

13. “Small, light plastic thing found in the washing machine.”

A small plastic thing found in the washing machine when I took out the clothes. Light (2.7 grams), seems injection molded. No text anywhere.

Solved By SurlySal:

It’s part of a tool used to clean window tracks.

update.grapee.jp/1666306

TinIsAlreadyTaken (OP):

I didn’t even know we had one of these!

Solved! It’s exactly that!

14. “Odd wooden kind of sheath thing we found in a box of wood working tools”

Solved Silver-Adder (OP):

Solved!

We agreed it’s a whetstone sheath. When I mentioned it, someone remembered there used to be a scythe around — not exactly something you’d think would be easy to forget, but there you go.

Thanks everyone for your help!

15. “Stainless steel utensil with a face and scraper of some sort”

Found in my grandparents utensil drawer, has a smiley face cut out and what looks like a peeler or something on one side

Solved By OkAdhesiveness4496:
It’s a corn scraper, used to remove kernels from the cob.

Edit: It appears to be a copy of the Kuhn Rikon Original Corn Zipper. Here’s their demonstration video .

horticulthoney (OP):
Yeah, you’re right — weird! Solved.

16. “Large metal object that appears to have been abandoned in a lot by my house”

Large metal object that looks like it has been slowly taken apart for scrap.

It has been sitting here in this lot for well over a year now.

Solved By jackrats:

It’s an industrial boiler, probably a Cleaver-Brooks model.

Personanonpotata (OP):
Solved! That was fast.

Stt022:
It’s a D-type water tube boiler that can produce superheated steam for industrial use. We use them at power plants to provide steam during startup. I engineer large combined-cycle power plants, and we buy these all the time.

17. “Small leather box with cups inside”

Hi, first time poster here! So: small leather box with 4 cups ( around 150 ml of volume) and another 4 smaller cups (around 50 ml) and a small teaspoon inside, that belonged to my grandfather. It has “Blumhardt” written on the top. Is it for liquor tasting? 2 euro coin for scale.

Solved By Halal0szto:
It’s a travel set for spirits, likely schnapps or liqueurs. Blumhardt is probably the distillery or brand associated with it.

Senior-Pie3609:
It’s a set of stirrup cups in a leather case.

18. “Concrete chunk with metal center found in yard”

Found a small concrete piece in the lawn with a metal rod in the middle. The metal looks silver and doesn’t seem hollow. No obvious valves or wiring nearby. There is already a lamp post close by too. Location is near the driveway a few yards behind our mailbox. I forgot it was there and hit it with the lawn mower yesterday. Anyone know what it or was? Thanks in advance!

Solved By Betty_Boss:

It’s a survey marker. Call your County Surveyor and ask what to do about it. They’ll have it in their records.

AlexTheMink (OP):
Thank you! I appreciate having a next step.

KevonFire1:
I used to survey. It’s probably about three feet deep and shaped like an obelisk. As others mentioned, it’s a reference marker, not a boundary. Most boundary markers are just long pieces of rebar driven a few inches below ground level that can be found with a metal detector.

Replacing these in winter was the worst—digging through frozen ground by hand.

Edit: I can’t add a new comment, so I’m adding this here. It’s set below grade so you don’t trip over it or hit it with a lawnmower. It’s big and solid so it won’t move, which was important before easy GPS.

When I surveyed, it was during that transition stage. We used a mix of methods: point-and-shoot instruments, GPS backpacks and poles, and long days spent going through old maps, leases, and microfiche records at the county courthouse or library.

We’d find a tree, then find the tree half a mile away, then fail to find the tree that supposedly marked the property line. This was in southeast Pennsylvania.

Then we’d take all that and try to make sense of it in early CAD software, go back out to the field, and figure it out. Old roads and missing trees made things pretty chaotic.

19. “What is this small hand thing screwed to the wall?”

Solved By Nytmare696:

It’s a decorative wall hook shaped like fingers. Source

SirBobPeel (OP):
Solved!

20. “Buried flat-topped metal tank with metal pipe near foundation — heating oil tank?”

First-time poster, long-time lurker. I can’t believe I finally have a real whatisthisthing!

While digging footings in my front yard, I uncovered what seems to be a large, flat-topped, hollow metal tank buried horizontally. There’s a cast-iron pipe or stack coming up from it that’s been concreted over, and it’s located close to the house foundation.

When I tap the top with a shovel, it sounds metallic and hollow. The surface is flat (not rounded), and the tank seems to extend under the yard toward the house.

I thought it might be an old septic tank, a stormwater infiltration device, or maybe an underground heating oil tank (the house now runs on natural gas). A septic system seems unlikely since this is an infill lot connected to the sewer, and stormwater tanks are usually perforated or made from plastic or concrete.

A heating oil tank expert I spoke with wasn’t sure either, but it looks and sounds like a steel UST (underground storage tank), possibly from when the house used oil heat decades ago.

Has anyone seen a flat-top steel heating oil tank like this before? Does that sound like what it could be?

(I’m being careful not to puncture it—just trying to confirm what I’ve found before calling an environmental contractor.)

Solved By GhostOfDino:

Could it be an old water collection setup?

rehamp (OP):
Solved!

I had a heating tank removal expert come out, and he was able to chip away the concrete around the vent stack. It turned out to be cast iron and filled with dirt below the concrete.

We drilled a small hole in the tank and tested for VOCs (heating oil remnants) using a PID meter—0.0 PPM. Then we tested for hydrogen sulfide (sewer gas)—also 0.0. I scoped it briefly and found the interior walls coated with brown soil, no liquid, sludge, or residue.

The county confirmed that I can do whatever I want with it, no further permitting required. I’m now waiting on a structural engineer’s input on how to redesign the porch footing while leaving as much of it in place as possible. Hopefully, we can fill it with gravel or concrete.

Thank you to everyone for your help!

21. “Hard plastic disc with topside reflective inlay and etched alphanumerics on the rim. Heavier than expected. Found in home of former aviation incident investigator in the 1970s.”

Solved By SoonToBeKaylee:
Looks like a cross-section of something. It’s not uncommon for parts to be analyzed by potting them in resin and then sanding the surface to reveal internal structures.

Ace861110:
I agree. They were probably examining the grain structure of the metal to check for a manufacturing defect. If I had to guess, they’re compressor blades.

Seikilos42 (OP):
Solved! Thank you so much, this was super helpful!

22. “Large device making loud fan sound over a train track in the UK”

The object is around 2 foot high I estimate. It’s making a loud PC like fan sound and it looks like it has two glass lenses or windows underneath. Mounted on a railway overpass and pointing down directly over the electric cables.

Solved By LazyEmu5073:

Pantograph Monitoring System (PanMon) ricardo.com/en/products/panmon

starquakegamma (OP):
Solved! Thank you!

“PanMon is a remote condition monitoring system that provides accurate measurements of damage on the pantograph units of passing trains as they undertake everyday operations.”

Also:
“A pantograph on an electric train is a mechanical arm on the roof that collects electrical power from overhead lines to run the train.”

23. “Found on a rural road. It weighs about 5 pounds, with a 34.5-inch wooden handle and a metal blade measuring 20.25 inches long and 4.25 inches wide. The cutting edge is on the top portion of the blade, farthest from the handle. The blade is fixed and not adjustable.”

I would love to know the name of this tool and what this was used for.

Solved By VTAffordablePaintbal:

My guess is a homemade billhook, something like this one on eBay . I think it’s just mounted upside down in the picture.

Perfect-Stage-7005 (OP):
Makes sense, thanks!

24. “Bird feeder? It’s official Jack Daniel’s merch and it looks like bird feeder but the 2 additional holes on each end are throwing me off”

What would those 2 extra holes be for? Seems like shot glasses!

Solved By Optimal-Set7619:

The metal piece was added. This is common merch sold at the Lynchburg distillery. It’s a barrel stave with indents for one bottle of Jack Daniel’s and two shot glasses, meant for display purposes.

Source: I live nearby and visit when we have guests.

Bogie_Gulferette (OP):
That makes sense, thank you!

25. “Metal post with a domed cap, about 1.5 – 2 feet tall, with wires going to and from it. Found it in the corner of a residential property.”

Yesterday, I was clearing out a lot of old things left behind our shed by the former owners, and I came across this metal post with a domed cap stuck in the ground. It’s about 1.5-2ft tall. It has wires going to and from it, and it looks pretty old. It also seems to be exactly where the property lines meet for the home behind and next to us. Also, if this one says ‘2’, then I’m assuming there’s a ‘1’ somewhere. Google lens said it’s possibly a wellhead? But why would it have electrical wires? *SOLVED*

Solved By jackrats:

It’s a cross connect for telephone wiring, also known as a beehive pedestal.

You can see an example here:
utilityindustry.info/telephone-pots

HaimonaMons (OP):
Thanks! Do you know if there’s any way to tell if it’s still in use or if I can get rid of it?

jackrats:
You can’t remove it because it’s the property of the local telephone company. You can ask if they’ll relocate or remove it, but they usually want to keep it available for future residents or nearby homes. If they agree to move it, expect to be charged, and it won’t be cheap.