Very rare 17th to 18th century English or American hand forged iron salamander for hearth cooking. Used as a spatula when needed, with its round end the salamander was primarily a browning iron holding a dish above the flame for the final touch or heated to red hot in the fire, then held above a roast or a custard to brown the surface. By one estimate, for every 1,000 peels or spatulas, perhaps one salamander survives. Measures 17 and one eighth inches long and 3 and one eighth inches across its flat serving end.