Brooms/Besom
Disclaimer: Greetings! If you find yourself on my page looking for source material, you are very well aware of the lack of documentation and references to brooms. This page is a compilation of hundreds of hours of searching catalogues, manuscripts, books, archeological finds, libraries, exhibits, etc as I am sure you are very well aware that search engines do not identify broom in individual art, illuminations, manuscripts, or most writings. If you use any items on this page, including the linked images and sources, please be sure to give credit to myself, Rosario Depew (Rosario De la Torre) for the work done.
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Brooms/Besom
brọ̄m, brume, brome, besom, broom
Brooms are a simple tool; a bundle of twigs or plants bound together. The brooms or besoms can be used inside or outside for many different jobs depending on what twigs or branches were used.
Like most woodland crafts, it was a yearly chore that was spread out to the village throughout the seasons.
Brooms in the Late Middle Ages.pdfBroom How To.pdf
Traditional Birch Broom
Aged birch twigs bound with hemp
Bicolored Turkey Wing
Black and yellow colored broomcorn bound by black and yellow hemp.
Bicolored Turkey Wing
Green and gold colored broomcorn bound by green and gold hemp.
Broomcorn Hawk's Tail
Broom corn bound with hemp
Broomcorn Turkey Wing
Broom corn bound with hemp
Broomcorn Traditional Round
Broom corn bound with hemp
Broomcorn Turkey Wing
Alternating colored broom corn bound with hemp.
Broomcorn Traditional Round
Colored broom corn bound with hemp.
Broomcorn Traditional Round
Broom corn bound with natural hemp.
History of Broom Making
England
Traditionally, besom brooms are made from the twiggy growth of the birch tree, and the craft was particularly strong in areas where birch coppices abounded. In other parts of the country, such as North Wales and Yorkshire, birch was frequently substituted by heather. Marram grass has also been occasionally used.
The craft was particularly strong in the Tadley district on the Hampshire-Berkshire border, which was a centre for woodland craftsmanship, with large numbers of rake makers, besom makers, hurdle makers, turners and many others. It is believed that broom/besom making in Tadley dates back to at least the fourteenth century. The market for brooms is said to have grown rapidly after after the Black Death in London when laws changed to stop people disposing of human waste in the street and people had to clean the streets in front of their accommodation. Tadley and other Heathland areas were close enough to London to be able to send carts loaded with brooms to London for sale.
Historical Production
England
Jenkins (1978: pp. 88-89).
Collecting material for the head:
The material is selected from the crown of the birch tree and left to season for several months until the twigs are hard but pliant – if used too soon, the finished besom will be too brittle. 3-5 year old coppiced birch is best.
Making the handle:
After the rods for the handles have seasoned, they are placed in a shave horse and the bark is removed with a drawknife. They are then smoothed with a draw shave, and the ends pointed with an axe.
Selecting material for the head:
The piles of seasoning material are opened up, trimmed with a short-bladed billhook and then sorted by hand. The pieces that are too small and brittle for besoms are cut away and the rejected material is later tied into bundles and sold as firewood. The brush is then sorted into two groups: a) the longer, rougher material for the core; b) the smoother, shorter strands for the outside of the head.
Making the head:
A handful of longer, rougher birch twigs are rolled together, and then a bundle of shorter, smoother twigs is arranged around them. When satisfied, the head is tied with two bonds of either willow or wire. The butts of each head are then chopped away using a chopping block and short-handled axe.
Fitting the handles (‘tails’):
The handle is inserted into the base and driven squarely home into the head. The head is then secured between the two bonds either with a nail, or by boring a hole in the handle with a small spiral auger and inserting a wooden peg.
Per Traditional British Crafts:
The Broom Handle
The broom handle can be made using ash, lime, or hazel.
The handle could be sharpened on one end with a hand axe that would be driven into the broom head bundle.
The Head of the Broom
Cuttings from the crown of a seven-year-old birch trees were stacked in bundles in autumn, to weather and season over winter.
In spring the twigs were trimmed with a billhook, and sorted the twigs, cutting away brittle material with a stripping billhook.
The long, rough twigs were separated out for the core of the besom, while the shorter, smoother twigs would be reserved for the outside layer.
The besom/broom was bound by hazel or willow.
Archeological Finds
Lithuania 14-15th Century
Site of excavation in Lithuania
In 2014 the Lower castle of Vilnius in Lithuania was excavated. The castle was dated to late 14th to 15th century.
In the area around one of the small buildings the remains of 15 brooms were discovered.
Additional brooms were found in wooden houses in the Lower Castle of Vilnius.
Shed with 8 brooms found in box
All brooms were discovered to be made of birch, with a few twigs still having leaves on them. Twigs were about 2.24-8.41 mm in thickness.
Eight brooms were found in a box filled with other household implements (a saddle, a shoulder yoke, a horsehollar, leather fragments, etc.)
There were different construction methods with some of the brooms constructed by handfuls of straight and parallel twigs, where as others were were made by crossing thicker sides of twigs from two handfuls.
Five brooms were found to have string binding.
The string used was identified as hemp and flax.
The length of the best surviving brooms were about 14 to 20 inches (40-50 cm) with the smallest being 8-9 inches (21 to 24 cm)
Germany 1700s
Archaeologists from the Westphalia-Lippe regional authority excavated an area under the St. Ulrich Church monastery and unearthed the contents of a latrine dating from the 1700s, but the church building itself dates back to before 1200.
The 25-centimetre twig broom bound with bast fibre.
Historical Material
Birch
Locations where birch is coppiced allow for ongoing broom production. Birch is aged, sorted and bound into heads for hand or stick brooms.
Heather
Locations where heather is bountiful allows for ongoing broom production. Heather is cut, aged, and bound into heads for hand or stick brooms.
Murram Grass
Coastal climates with flexible hardy grass allow for ongoing straw broom production. Brooms made from straws were stated as wearing out faster. I have not experimented with murram grass to confirm.
Flora used for brooms around Europe and southern Asia
The fascinating and fun thing about some of the flora identified and named are that they have the name for broom (scoparia, scoparium, etc..) symbolizing that at the time of their naming they were known in that area as being used for sweeping.
Historical Visual Representation
MS. Douce 6-Flemish Psalter fol.053v-054r, c.a. 1320-1330
Bodleyan Library, Oxford
Scene from the The Golden Haggadah, circa 1320.
Scene from the The Golden Haggadah, circa 1320.
The Psalter of Bonne de Luxembourg, Mid 14th Century
Mirror Cover: Ivory: Ateller of the Boxes French. ca. 1340-1360)
The Annunciation, version in Musee des Beaux-Arts, Brussels, Robert Campin, Belgium, 1410s
Scene of Annunciation, hand broom hanging from lanyard on nail on the wall.
Treatise on evil spirits and witchcraft: 15th Century: Manuscripts and Early Printed Books
Book of Hours, MS M.1004 fol. 96r, France, Paris, ca. 1420-1425.
Mendel 1 - From 1425 Folio 55r Diener
Facta et dicta Memorabilia, Valerius Maximus, Francais 287, fol. 1, Valere Maxime ecrivant, 1450-1475
Schoppinger Altars - Verkundigung Maria, 1453-57
Le mortifiement de vaine plaisance, France, Angers, between 1455 and 1460
MS M.705 fol. 50r
Le mortifiement de vaine plaisance, France, Angers, between 1455 and 1460
MS M.705 fol. 64v
Book of Hours, MS M. 282 fol. 19v, France, Paris, ca. 1460
Book of hours, MS M.32 fol. 85, France, ca. 1470
Froissart's Chronicles, Bruges ca 1470-1475, Paris BnF, Francais 2644, fol. 142r
A monkey man in a hood hits an armoured man with a hand broom.
Saint Matthew the Evangelist, Gabriel Malesskircher, 1478, Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid, Inv. No. 234 (1928.16)
Francais 9140 Barthelemy l'Anglais, De proprietatibus rerum fol. 107 Societe (servante), ca. 1480
Servant sweeps room with a green (looks like it is not fully cured yet) long, non-stick broom.
Plate with Wife Beating Husband with Hand Broom. Netherlands, ca. 1480
MS M.0894, fol. 241v Christ Prophesying Second Coming, ca. 1485c (Belgium)
MS. S.07. fol. 012v Month, Occupation (December) Belgium, ca. 1490 Pierpont Morgan Library
Aristote, Ethiques, Politieque et Economiques: Manuscript, 1401-1500
Folio 29v - Tuebingen House Book, 15th Century
A broom is posted at the top of a tent, holding the side panels up of the shop.
Folio 29v - Tuebingen House Book, 15th Century
Folio 29v - Tuebingen House Book, 15th Century
A broom is posted at the top of a tent, holding the side panels up of the shop.
Les Secret des secrets, Alain Chartier, Le Breviaire des nobles, ca 1401-1500
Le marchand de balais Cris de Paris, ca 1500, BnF, Arsenal, Est. 264 Res. pl. 21
MS H.5 fol. 130v Judas Maccabbaeus Cleansing of Sanctuary, Paris, ca. 1500
Francais 995, fol.39v Martial d'Auvergne Danse Macabre des Femmes, Allegorie Danse Maccabre, Paris 1500-1510c.
The Holy Family, Joos von Cleve 1512-1513, Netherlands
Amb. 279.2 folio 10 verso (Landauer I), ca. 1519
Champion des Dames, ca. 1541, Martin Le Franc
Hans Vogel c.a. 1550 Amb. 317b.2 Folio 6 verso (Mendel II)
A cobbler working on shoes and in the background a hand broom hanging on the wall.
Burlesque Feast, Jan Mandijn. 1550
Broom Mendel Hausbuch (Amb. 317b.2. fol. 16r), ca 1563
Preparation for the Passover, Johann Sadeler I, 1585, Netherlands.
Two people with hand brooms/brushes mark the door and window frames with blood.
L'accès à ces gravures est une gracieuseté du musée National d’Allemagne , late 16th century
Woman cooking at the fire with a broom stored under the hearth.
Amb. 317b.2 Folio 61 verso (Mendel II) Ottillia Seidenin widow and Burgerin, cook, 1592
Drie gemaskerde figuren, één van hen met een bezem waarin kaarsen zijn gestoken: ca 1595-1596:
Revelers celebrate, one carries a broom with candles in the bristles.
The Gathering of Mulberry Leaves and the Feeding of the Silkworms, Plate 5 from "The Introduction of the Silkworm" [Vermis Sericus] ca. 1595, Karel van Mallery, Netherlands
Amb. 317b.2 Folio 62 recto (Mendel II), ca 1599
A woman cooking at the hearth with a non-stick long broom leaning on the wall.
The Musician's Brawl, Georges de La Tour, c.a. 1625-1630
Vechtende boeren, Adriaen Matham (attributed to), after Adriaen Pietersz van de Venne, 1620 - 1660
A whole lot is happening in this image, but it includes brooms.
Peasant Meal, Jan Jansz Buesem (attributed to), c. 1625 - c. 1635
The Broom Maker, Francisco Herrera the Elder, Early 17th century
Bezembinder, Jan Gillisz. van Vliet, 1635
Two Men playing Cards in the Kitchen of an Inn, David Teniers, ca 1635-1640.
The Smokers, Adriaen Brouwer, 1636. Flemmish.
Revelers enjoying a smoke while a long-handled broom rests on the lower left corner.
Pannenkoekenbakster, Cornelis Visscher (II), 1638 - 1658
A wooden spoon and a scrub brush lay on the floor of a peasants home.
A Housewife in an inner Courtyard Cleaning Fish, Hendrik Potuyl, ca 1639-1649
A broom bound in willow. Unable to determine if it has a long stick or if it is just a hand broom.
A Housewife in an inner Courtyard Cleaning Fish, Hendrik Potuyl, ca 1639-1649
A broom bound in willow. Unable to determine if it has a long stick or if it is just a hand broom.
An Old Woman peeling Pears, ca. 1640s
A Girl with a Broom, Rembrandt van Rijn, (1646-1651)
The Rich Man being led to Hell, David Teniers the Younger, ca 1647
Witches at their Incantations, Salvator Rosa, early 17th century
A Woman Doing Housework, Plate 5 from Five Feminine Occupations ca. 1648–50
Geertruydt Roghman Dutch
A long handled broom rests against a table while a woman cleans.
An Old Peasant Caresses a Kitchen maid in a Stable, David Teniers the Young, ca. 1650
The Lacemaker's School, Quiringh Gerritsz. van Brekelenkam, ca 1622-1630
A round broom leans against a chair while the lacemakers work.
Woman scouring metalware, Jan Havicksz. Steen, 1650 - 1660
A woman scours metalware while a broom leans against the wall.
Dulle Griet by David Ryckaert the Younger, 1651-1659
A Weaver's Workshop, Johannes Dircksz. van Oudenrogge, 1652
Spinnende vrouw voor een huis, Adriaen van Ostade, 1652
The Interior of an Inn with Nine Peasants and Hurdy-Gudey Player, Adriaen van Ostade, ca. 1653.
An Interior, with a Man and a Woman seated by the Fire, Quiringh van Brekelenkam, 1653.
Horse Stables, Gerard ter Borch, Dutch, c.a. 1654.
A Dutch Interior, Quiringh Gerritsz Van Brekelenkam, 1640-1658
A fisherman and his wife in an interior, Quiringh Gerritsz Van Brekelenkam, 1657
Mother and Child with a Serving Woman Sweeping, Pieter de Hooch, 1655-1657.
Couple with Parrot, Pieter de Hooch, 1655-1657.
Interior with Mother and Child, Pieter de Hooch, 1655-1658.
Two women and a Child in Court, Pieter de Hooch, 1657.
The Courtyard of a House in Delft, Pieter de Hooch, 1658.
A Peepshow with Views of the Interior of a Dutch House, Samuel van Hoogstraten, 1655–60
The shoemaker and his wife, Quiringh Gerritsz Van Brekelenkam, mid 17th Century
The cobbler and his wife, Quiringh Gerritsz Van Brekelenkam, mid 17th Century
The Doctor's Studio, Abraham Diepraem, mid17th Century
Pieter Janssens Elinga, mid 17th century
A modest interior with an elderly couple seated at a a table, eating mussels and bread, Quiringh Gerritsz Van Brekelenkam, mid 17th Century
Peasants playing Bowls outside a Village Inn, David Teniers the Younger, ca 1660
A Woman and her Maid in a Courtyard, Pieter de Hooch, 1660-1661.
Interior of a Woman Sweeping, Cornelis de Man, 1666.
Woman peeling an Apple, Cornelis Bisschop, 1667
A woman peels an apple while a broom leans against the wall.
The Love Letter, Johannes Vermeer, c. 1669 - c. 1670
A woman reads a love letter while a broom leans against a shelf.
A Doctor tending a Patient's Foot in his Surgery, 17th century
Quiringh van Brekelenkam - A Couple Having a Meal before a Fireplace, 1669
A couple eats by the fireplace while a broom rests against a barrel.
Schoenmaker in winkel voor zijn huis en een klant, Adriaen van Ostade, 1671
A cobbler works in his shop while a stick broom leans against his stall.
The Cottage Courtyard, Adriaen van Ostade, 1673.
De diefachtige duivel, Johannes Jacobsz van den Aveele, 1682
A broom leans against the wall while the devils convinces a woman not to sweep.
Fish Market, Cornelis Dusart, 1683
Borstelmaker, Jan Luyken, 1694
References in Literature:
?a1300 Names Hare (Dgb 86)24 : Þe wodecat, Þe brodlokere, þe bromkat.
c1330(?a1300) Guy(2) (Auch)p.422 : In a brom feld þer wer hidde Þre hundred Sarrazins.
(a1382) WBible(1) (Bod 959)Jer.48.6 : Broom trees [Dc 369(1): ʒee shul be as iencian trees in desert].
(1432) *Acc.GrantchesterW.B.1 : Item, for brome Besmys bowth..iij d.
c1440 Thrn.Med.Bk.(Thrn)48/20 : Tak a brome stalke & schafe of þe rynde with a knyfe.
c1450(c1405) Mum & S.(2) (Add 41666)903 : Þe benes blowid and the brome-floures.
c1450 Med.Bk.(1) (Med-L 136)80/209 : Take an erbe that grovith on the rote of brome geneste.
c1450 Med.Bk.(2) (Add 33996)227 : Tak auence, wylde sauge..bromflour.
(1222) Domesday Bk.St.Paul in Camd.6952 : Due grave de havecho & bromhee & alia haicia vestita bosco continent..x acras.
a1500 Sln.122 Artist.Recipes (Sln 122) 332/17 : To make yealwe turnesoll. Take þe flowres of brome when they be most fresch, and pyke leue be leue..and serve hem in all wyse as þe reed.
c1400 GGuy(1) (Tbr E.7)1410 : A noyce efter him come like a besom made of brome.
c1436 Ipswich Domesday(2) (Add 25011)201 : Of eche carte of brome oon sheff, and [yt] longeth to the baylles.
(?1440) Palladius (DukeH d.2)1.524 : A stondyng most be maad and ouerfolde And couered wel with shingil, tile, or broom.
(c1452) Doc.in HMC Rep.5 App.520b : Carriage of belet and brome to the New Gote, for to make a wacchefyre there.
a1400 Lanfranc (Ashm 1396)62/12 : It is miche worþ to enuyrounne þe place aboute þat is biten wiþ brome I-stampid [L genesta].
c1425 Arderne Fistula (Sln 6)53/33 fn. : [In an ointment] cineris geneste [glossed:] aschen of brome.
?c1425 *Chauliac(2) (Paris angl.25)119b/b : And bathes be made of the water of the sethyng of alum of salte of betes, of broome, of cypresse.
c1440 Thrn.Med.Bk.(Thrn)32/38 : Tak þe rute of fynkall & þe sedis of brome.
c1450 Burg.Practica (Rwl D.251)202/6 : Take grene brawnchys off brome and bren them and make powder off them.
c1450 Burg.Practica (Rwl D.251)220/7 : Take oyle of brome and a-noynte þer þe sore is.
c1450 Med.Bk.(2) (Add 33996)136 : Make a plastre of floures of broom, & oile, & wyn.
?c1450 Stockh.PRecipes (Stockh 10.90)121/10 : Take..as myche of croppys of broom.
?a1500 Henslow Recipes (Henslow)29/17 : Take brom and schaue of þe rynde..and make balles þer-of and do hit on þe wonde.
?a1500 Henslow Recipes (Henslow)66/1 : For to make vnguentum geneste. Gadre floures of brom.
(1346) Doc.in Nicolas Navy 2477 : [For] bromes [for washing and cleaning the ship] 3 d.
(1356) *Pipe Roll (PRO) 32 Edw.III m.33/2 dorso [OD col.] : Computat in..xvj bromes.
(1420-1) in Gras Eng.Cust.Syst.504 : De Petro Jacobsson pro..C parv' bromys, iim. meltyngpotts.
(c1424) Doc.Brewer in Bk.Lond.E.177 : And bromes bought att dyuerse tymes.
a1450(1412) Hoccl.RP (Hrl 4866)533 : Now hath þis lord but litil neede of broomes To swepe a-way þe filthe out of þe street.
(1465) Acc.Howard in RC 57292 : Item, for a brome the same day, ob.
Sources:
The Story of Medieval Brooms by Pvolas Blazevicius: https://www.academia.edu/15497252/The_story_of_medieval_brooms
Street Arabs, Drain Sweepers, and Birch Brooms by Dale Jarvis
Plants Traditionally Used to Make Brooms by Anely Nedelcheva, Yunis Dogan, and Paolo Maria Guerrera
Jenkins, J Geraint, (1978) Traditional Country Craftsmen (Routledge & Kegan Paul), pp. 85-89
Tabor, Raymond, (1994) Traditional Woodland Crafts: A Practical Guide, (B T Bastford), pp. 113–114
Traditional British Crafts, 1989 Edition by Colour Library Books
https://www.ericafinproduction.com/en-gb/our-tradition
https://heritagecrafts.org.uk/broom-making/
https://www.adamking.co.uk/collections/besom-brooms
https://sorghum-brooms-eco.com/index.php/en_sorghum/history-of-brooms/
https://www.theguardian.com/money/2009/may/16/besom-making-birch-brooms
https://www.thelocal.de/20090527/19547/