Product Details

This Federal and Antebellum Period iron door key, dating to circa 1800–1850 and associated with Savannah, Georgia, is a large cast-iron architectural key designed for a warded mortise lock. Measuring 134.2 mm (5.28 in) in length with a bow width of 46.3 mm (1.82 in), a thickness of 10 mm, and a weight of 105 g (3.70 oz), it survives in excellent condition. The key features a distinctive oval bow, a hollow barrel, and a simple warding pattern on the bit—traits typical of early nineteenth-century American door hardware. Such keys operated heavy iron lock mechanisms set into wooden doors of residences, merchant buildings, churches, and warehouses. The hollow barrel allowed the key to pass over an internal guide post, while the bit’s specific cuts bypassed the lock’s internal wards. During Savannah’s expansion as a major Southern port city between 1800 and 1850, these robust cast-iron keys provided practical daily security before pin-tumbler locks became widespread. Large architectural key