Reeding is a technique wherein a number of narrow ridges called "reeds" are carved or milled into a surface.
[The Free Dictionary: "Reeding"](_blank)
/ref>[Dictionary.com: "Reeding"](_blank)
/ref>
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Numismatics
In numismatics
Numismatics is the study or collection of currency, including coins, tokens, paper money, medals and related objects.
Specialists, known as numismatists, are often characterized as students or collectors of coins, but the discipline also includ ...
, reeded edges are often referred to as "ridged" or "grooved" (American usage), or "milled" (British usage). Some coins, such as United States quarters and dimes
DIMES (Distributed Internet Measurements & Simulations) was a subproject of the EVERGROW Integrated Project in the EU Information Society Technologies, Future and Emerging Technologies programme. It studied the structure and topology of the Inter ...
, 1 euro, Australian
Australian(s) may refer to:
Australia
* Australia, a country
* Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia
** European Australians
** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists
** Aboriginal A ...
5, 10, 20 cents, 1 and 2 dollars, as well many other current coins, have reeded edges.
One reason for having reeded edges was to prevent counterfeiting.[Why do some coins have ridges around the edges?](_blank)
/ref> Some gold and silver coins were reeded to discourage clipping
Clipping may refer to:
Words
* Clipping (morphology), the formation of a new word by shortening it, e.g. "ad" from "advertisement"
* Clipping (phonetics), shortening the articulation of a speech sound, usually a vowel
* Clipping (publications) ...
, i.e. scraping off the precious metals from the edge of the coin, to maintain its stated value in precious metal. This practice was made more difficult through the implementation of reeding by Isaac Newton
Sir Isaac Newton (25 December 1642 – 20 March 1726/27) was an English mathematician, physicist, astronomer, alchemist, theologian, and author (described in his time as a "natural philosopher"), widely recognised as one of the grea ...
in 1698, during his time as warden of the Royal Mint
Warden of the Mint was a high-ranking position at the Royal Mint in England from 1216 to 1829. The warden was responsible for a variety of minting procedures and acted as the immediate representative of the current monarch inside the mint. The role ...
.
Another benefit of certain coins having reeded edges is that it helps the visually impaired
Visual impairment, also known as vision impairment, is a medical definition primarily measured based on an individual's better eye visual acuity; in the absence of treatment such as correctable eyewear, assistive devices, and medical treatment†...
identify different coin denominations by sense of touch alone.
This dual purpose of reeding is sometimes made explicit on the milled edges of coins themselves. For example, many issuances of the British pound coin
The British one pound (£1) coin is a denomination of sterling coinage. Its obverse bears the Latin engraving ELIZABETH II D G REG () F D () meaning, 'Elizabeth II, by the grace of God, Queen, Defender of the Faith'. Proclamation of 28 May 1 ...
have historically had their edges inscribed with the Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
phrase '', an adaption from Vergilius
Publius Vergilius Maro (; traditional dates 15 October 7021 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He composed three of the most famous poems in Latin literature: t ...
' Aeneid
The ''Aeneid'' ( ; la, Aenē̆is or ) is a Latin Epic poetry, epic poem, written by Virgil between 29 and 19 BC, that tells the legendary story of Aeneas, a Troy, Trojan who fled the Trojan_War#Sack_of_Troy, fall of Troy and travelled to ...
meaning 'an ornament and a safeguard'.
Furniture
In furniture
Furniture refers to movable objects intended to support various human activities such as seating (e.g., stools, chairs, and sofas), eating (tables), storing items, eating and/or working with an item, and sleeping (e.g., beds and hammocks). Fu ...
, reeding is sometimes used around bedposts, and the legs of tables and chairs. Its use in this fashion was inspired by Greek and Roman architectural styles,["reeded leg"](_blank)
/ref> and is the opposite of fluting.
Architecture
In architecture
Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing building ...
, reeding is a form of molding usually found on columns, and is sometimes considered to be synonymous with gadrooning
Gadrooning is a decorative motif consisting of convex curves in a series. In furniture and other decorative arts, it is an ornamental carved band of tapered, curving and sometimes alternating concave and convex sections, usually diverging obliquel ...
.[Encyclopædia Britannica: "Fluting and Reeding"](_blank)
/ref>
See also
*Knurling
Knurling is a manufacturing process, typically conducted on a lathe, whereby a pattern of straight, angled or crossed lines is rolled into the material.
Etymology
The terms ''knurl'' and ''knurled'' are from an earlier ''knur'' ‘knot in woo ...
*Milled coinage
In numismatics, the term milled coinage (also known as machine-struck coinage) is used to describe coins which are produced by some form of machine, rather than by manually hammering coin blanks between two dies (hammered coinage) or casting coi ...
*Spline (mechanical)
Splines are ridges or teeth
on a drive shaft that matches with grooves in a mating piece and transfer torque to it, maintaining the angular correspondence between them.
For instance, a gear mounted on a shaft might use a male spline on the shaft ...
References
{{Woodworking
Architectural elements
Numismatics
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