Scheepstimmermansboor met een uitgeholde lepel, een handvat met ronde doorsnede en uitstekende vleugels c. 1590 - 1596

This shipwright's auger, of unknown date and maker, stands as a humble yet potent symbol of creation and craftsmanship. Its elongated form, terminating in a spoon-like hollow, evokes the act of carving and shaping, of bringing forth form from raw material. Consider how the image of piercing and penetration, embodied by this tool, echoes through time. From ancient fertility rites, where the drill symbolized generative power, to the more modern interpretations of the drill in industrialization and the subconscious desire to penetrate the unknown. The auger also reminds us of the cyclical nature of creation, the way in which we are constantly shaping and reshaping the world around us. Its use, as a means of constructing vessels, hints at the collective dreams of exploration and the desire to navigate the seas. This tool, therefore, is not merely functional but a vessel carrying the weight of cultural memory and human ambition.