Rag-and-bone man
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A rag-and-bone man collects unwanted household items and sells them to merchants. Scraps of cloth and paper could be turned into cardboard, while broken glass could be melted down and reused, and even
The Bone-Grubber by Richard Beard. Henry Mayhew described one bone-grubber he encountered as wearing a "ragged coat ... greased over, probably with the fat of the bones he gathered."
Rag-and-bone man in Paris in 1899 (Photo Eugène Atget)
A rag-and-bone man with his horse and cart on the streets of Streatham, south-west London in 1985
A rag-and-bone man in Croydon, London, May 2011
Donkey stone
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A donkey stone was a type of scouring block, used mostly in the mill towns of the North of England to highlight the leading edge of stone steps.
Rag-and-bone man
…much as £25 (roughly equivalent to £594 now) per day collecting rags. Most used handcarts rather than a bag, and some used a pony and cart, giving out rubbing stones in exchange for the items that they collected. In 1958, a Manchester Guardian reporter accompanied rag-and-bone man John Bibby as he made his rounds…
An Edward Read stone
Eli Whalley blue plaque