When Holland Bowl Mill ensures a lifetime guarantee on our products, we really mean it. With proper care and cleaning, a wooden bowl will last for generations, and that’s no joke. In fact, it may even be an understatement. Even though Holland Bowl Mill is known for our new wooden bowls, you should also consider the durability of an old wooden bowl.
We have preached that using our Bee’s Oil Wood Preserver is a wonderful way to keep your wooden bowls looking and feeling fresh. Sometimes, nature itself can be a wonderful preserver, and that holds true for the world’s oldest wooden bowl, which was discovered just three years ago.
This wooden bowl was discovered in Orkney, Scotland, which is an archipelago off the northern coast of Great Britain. Discovered by archeologists from the University of the Highlands and Islands Archeology Institute, this wooden bowl was found preserved in a chamber underneath a tower-like stone building called Cairns Broch. Despite being partially split down one side, it amazingly had been held together and protected by muddy slits of the excavation.
Archaeologists determined that the wooden bowl is nearly 2,000 years old and crafted during the Iron Age. They believe it was likely used to serve food and drink, which is not too different from how wooden bowls are used today. However, this bowl has a round base, suggesting that it needed to be constantly held when full, likely during social gatherings.
The bowl is roughly 30 centimeters in diameter, but was made using different techniques than the ones commonly employed today by Holland Bowl Mill. This bowl was skillfully hand carved from a half-log of an alder tree, with tool marks still visible on the interior of the bowl. On the outside of the bowl, a series of bronze strips can be seen, which acted like rivets to either repair the bowl or to help prolong its life.
While Holland Bowl Mill may not guarantee our bowls for 2,000 years, we will still stand by our lifetime guarantee, meaning if your bowl ever cracks or warps from regular use, Holland Bowl Mill will replace it with a new one of similar size and finish. Discover the durability of a wooden bowl yourself and add one of our unique wooden bowl sets to your shopping cart. You can also visit our showroom at 120 James Street in Holland to see all of our products, or call us at (616) 396-6513 to place your order.
