Shovel Collection

Solidarity of Labour: Labours May Day, dedicated to the workers of the world. Cartoon of 1890 by Walter Crane (1845 - 1914)

Snow shovellers in Piazza della Signoria in Florence after an exceptional snowfall Florence piazza della Signoria. Date of Photograph:1900 ca

East Pool Mine Illogan, Cornwall. 1893
Clearing out ore from landing brace at surface. Photographer: John Charles Burrow

(1755-1804). Hamilton at Yorktown in 1781. Steel engraving, 1858, after a painting by Alonzo Chappel
ALEXANDER HAMILTON (1755-1804). Hamilton at Yorktown in 1781. Steel engraving, 1858, after a painting by Alonzo Chappel

Dig for Victory poster - WWII
World War Two poster encouraging British civilians to dig for victory, featuring somebody doing just that

Workers in Heihe on the Chinese Russian border shovel heavy snow from the worst snowstorm to hit northern China in
Ashley Cooper / SpecialistStock

Each man for himself - prospectors at West Wylam digging for coal during the fuel shortage in February 1952

Tsar Nicholas II of Russia, Tsarevitch, Grand Duchess Tatian
Tsar Nicholas II of Russia pictured with two of his children, the Grand Duchess Tatiana and Alexei, the Tsarevitch, building a fortification from snow in the grounds of the Imperial Palace at

Ruins of Petworth boys school, 29th September 1942
Buildings after being bombed. Military personnel clearing rubble from bomb site. 29 September 1942. George Garland Collection West Sussex Record Office Ref No: Garland N21852

Illustration of female manual worker standing behind tipper truck holding spade

FOUNDING OF ST. AUGUSTINE. The founding of St. Augustine, Florida, in 1565 by Pedro Menendez de Aviles (center). Wood engraving, American, 19th century

Garden irrigation in the 1500s
Garden water pumped through beds via intersecting channels, formal bed design of 1571. Hand-colored woodcut of a 19th-century illustration

Tapping blast furnace, and casting iron into pigs, Siemens iron and steel works, Wales, 1885. The pollution generated during the production of iron and steel at the Siemens Landore Works

Norman Gnome

Miner at coal face -3
Coal miner working underground at the coalface of Acres Nook private coal mine, near, Kidsgrove, Staffordshire England. The mine closed in 1991. First published The Sunday Correspondent Date: 1990

8626017

Coal Works. A view near Neath in Glamorganshire, South Wales, 1798 (hand coloured aquatint on paper)
7485352 Coal Works. A view near Neath in Glamorganshire, South Wales, 1798 (hand coloured aquatint on paper) by Hassell, John (1767-1825); 22x33 cm; Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust, Telford

A footplate
5310314 A footplate; (add.info.: Engraving depicting a footplate - the platform for the crew in the cab of a locomotive - as the crew shovel coal into the furnace)

A Hobart chain-gang, a group of prisoners chained together to perform menial or physically challenging work as a form
5614423 A Hobart chain-gang, a group of prisoners chained together to perform menial or physically challenging work as a form of punishment; (add.info.: A Hobart chain-gang)

Anglo Saxon agriculture: four-wheel wagon 107, two-wheel wagon 108, plough 109, shovel, scythe and hammer 110, sickle
FLO4702412 Anglo Saxon agriculture: four-wheel wagon 107, two-wheel wagon 108, plough 109, shovel, scythe and hammer 110, sickle, rake and fork 111, harvest cart 112

Natives of the Admiralty Islands fishing and sailing, Papua New Guinea. Handcoloured copperplate engraved by Sasso
FLO4624417 Natives of the Admiralty Islands fishing and sailing, Papua New Guinea. Handcoloured copperplate engraved by Sasso from Giulio Ferrario's Ancient

WW1: The soldier king (illustration)
8684959 WW1: The soldier king (illustration) by Job, pseudonym for Onfray de Breville, Jacques (1858-1931); (add.info.: Events of the war 1914-1918 illustration Job The soldier king Facts of war)

Preparing a charcoal pit on a Wealden farm, Sussex (b/w photo)
8676031 Preparing a charcoal pit on a Wealden farm, Sussex (b/w photo) by English Photographer, (20th century); Private Collection; (add.info.: Preparing a charcoal pit on a Wealden farm, Sussex)

Roadworks in Paris at night (colour litho)
8673206 Roadworks in Paris at night (colour litho) by Jeanniot, Pierre Georges (1848-1934); Private Collection; (add.info.: Roadworks in Paris at night)

Shaving, Shepherd, Shipwreck, Shoeblack, Shovel, Shrew-mouse, Shutter, Shuttle, Sickle, Sideboard, Sidewalk
8650077 Shaving, Shepherd, Shipwreck, Shoeblack, Shovel, Shrew-mouse, Shutter, Shuttle, Sickle, Sideboard, Sidewalk, Signal (engraving) by German School

8622672

French postcard dated circa, 1900, showing two children playing in the sand on a beach
3665464 French postcard dated circa, 1900, showing two children playing in the sand on a beach by French School, (20th century); (add.info.: French postcard dated circa 1900)

Leibig card depicting French children on the beach 1890
3665734 Leibig card depicting French children on the beach 1890 by Unknown Artist, (19th century); (add.info.: Leibig card depicting French children on the beach 1890.); Universal History Archive/UIG.

Caricature about the 1819 comet (end of the world) (engraving)
1729392 Caricature about the 1819 comet (end of the world) (engraving).

A mollebart
5311959 A mollebart; (add.info.: Engraving depicting mollebart, an agricultural implement formerly used in Flanders, consisting of a kind of large shovel drawn by a horse and guided by a man)

A labourer setting off for work
5616098 A labourer setting off for work; (add.info.: Illustration depicting a laborer setting off for work on a winter morning. Dated 19th Century. 01/01/1872); Universal History Archive/UIG.

Alexei Nikolaevich son of Nicholas of Russia, 1910s (b/w photo)
5669290 Alexei Nikolaevich son of Nicholas of Russia, 1910s (b/w photo); Universal History Archive/UIG.

A reaping shovel
3732432 A reaping shovel; (add.info.: Engraving depicting a reaping shovel. Dated 19th Century.); Universal History Archive/UIG.

Trades: Navvy (colour litho)
8641505 Trades: Navvy (colour litho) by English School, (20th century); Private Collection; (add.info.: Navvy. Illustration for one of a set of playing cards used in the game Jack of All Trades)

New Zealand, 1890s: Prospectors trying a Dish (b/w photo)
8662635 New Zealand, 1890s: Prospectors trying a Dish (b/w photo) by New Zealand Photographer, (19th century); Private Collection; (add.info.: Prospectors trying a Dish)

A lighted coal cellar, mid 1930s (b/w photo)
8634925 A lighted coal cellar, mid 1930s (b/w photo) by English Photographer, (20th century); Private Collection; (add.info.: A lighted coal cellar, mid 1930s)

postcard depicting French children on the beach, 1900
3665731 postcard depicting French children on the beach, 1900 by French School, (20th century); (add.info.: postcard depicting French children on the beach 1900.); Universal History Archive/UIG.

A navigator's shovel
5311955 A navigator's shovel; (add.info.: Engraving depicting a navigator's shovel. Dated 19th century.); Universal History Archive/UIG.

Title page with vignette of Demeter goddess of agriculture with scythe amid statuary in a park
FLO4616286 Title page with vignette of Demeter goddess of agriculture with scythe amid statuary in a park. Engraving by Pillement finished by Nee after a painting by Percier

Miner's Tools (engraving)
8637292 Miner's Tools (engraving) by American School, (19th century); Private Collection; (add.info.: Miner's Tools)

First World War 1914-1918: Belgian King Albert I and his General Staff work on the trenches on the Yser River
XEE4170280 First World War 1914-1918: Belgian King Albert I and his General Staff work on the trenches on the Yser River, 1914 (print); Private Collection; (add.info.: First World War 1914-1918)

Work at the Bakalskii mine, 1910. Creator: Sergey Mikhaylovich Prokudin-Gorsky
Work at the Bakalskii mine, 1910. A family, with shovels and horse-drawn carts, working at the iron mines in the Bakaly hills

Paddy drying9
Shaibal Nandi

Worker
Madhusudanan Parthasarathy

The day after
SONY DSC. Senad Tahmaz

clean city 2
Roswitha Schleicher-Schwarz

Cleaning
Angela Muliani Hartojo

From Siberia with Love ! (II)
Sorin Onisor

All Professionally Made to Order for Quick Shipping

"From Solidarity to Victory: The Enduring Symbolism of the Shovel" The humble shovel, a tool that has witnessed and shaped history across centuries, stands as a symbol of labor, resilience, and triumph. Its significance transcends time and borders, connecting diverse moments in human experience. In the spirit of solidarity, labors around the world celebrate May Day each year. They unite under banners bearing images like Hamilton at Yorktown in 1781 - an iconic depiction of determination amidst conflict. This steel engraving by Alonzo Chappel captures the essence of collective effort that echoes through generations. During World War II's darkest days, the "Dig for Victory" poster became a rallying cry for nations ravaged by war. It urged citizens to cultivate their own food as an act of defiance against scarcity and oppression. In Heihe on the Chinese-Russian border, workers shoveled heavy snow during one fateful March storm - a testament to their unwavering dedication even in nature's harshest grip. Through royal corridors and mining tunnels alike, shovels have left indelible marks on history's canvas. Tsar Nicholas II himself may have wielded one alongside his family members while tending to their estate or engaging in manual labor - reminding us that hard work knows no boundaries. Deep within East Pool Mine in Cornwall lies evidence of back-breaking toil endured by miners seeking prosperity beneath unforgiving earth. Similarly haunting are the ruins of Petworth boys school from September 29th, 1942 - where young hands once grasped shovels now reclaimed by time but forever etched into memory. Gender barriers crumbled as well when illustrations depicted female manual workers standing proudly behind tipper trucks with spades held high. These women shattered stereotypes while contributing significantly to societies' progress. The founding tale unfolds further with Pedro Menendez de Aviles establishing St. Augustine, Florida in 1565.