For sale is an antique PIETRA COAL CLOTHES FLAT IRON. The iron has a wood handle which has embossed text with the brand name. This is early 1900s cast iron iron has a wooden handle. This iron measures about 8 1/2 inches, 3 1/2 inches wide and 8 inches tall. This scarce invention is a first rate collectible.
This style iron was intended to replace the solid SAD iron. The solid SAD iron was heated by placing the iron on the stove or other heat source. You ironed with a pair of SAD irons by rotating between the iron in use and the iron being heated. The innovation of the charcoal iron was that it was self-heating because of the heat source of burning coal was inside the oven. Now all you had to work out was how to keep the coal ash off of your clean clothes. The charcoal style oven had a short life span because by 1910, the clean and efficient electric iron replaced not only the charcoal iron but also the “cutting edge” gas fired irons that were on the market at the time.
