32 • HISTORY&HERITAGE
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Key
Ingenuity
» » IT’S ACKNOWLEDGED THAT A KEY
is something that gives the owner
privileged access. Of course it’s also
more than that; it’s part of the mind-
set, part of the security awareness, of
the owner to protect his assets and
property. Most locks today and of the
past strive to make the use of the key/
lock intuitive; simply insert the key and
turn to either lock or unlock. In our
context should a key fall into the wrong
hands or – in some cases - is even seen
(there are those that can memorise
a key’s biting) there is an obvious
vulnerability and so a class of key
emerged, for those with a more acute
security awareness, that also requires
some form of additional knowledge to
successfully open the lock.
Normal intuitive
operation with
its proper key in
this lock would
never open it.
The mechanism
features a series
of catches which
once set the key
rotation must be
reversed to set the
next catch. Once
the catches have
all been set the
key then goes on
to withdraw the
triple bolt head.
For instance, a modern combination
lock requires that not only the
combination numbers are known but
the sequence of operation is also
known. The trial and error approach
is extremely unlikely to achieve a
result for a layperson, even with the
combination numbers known. This
concept was also applied to early
locks.
‘The advanced or high
security locks of pre
industrial times (18th
century and earlier)
had keys which looked
typical of the period;
they were simple but
competently produced
warded keys’
The advanced or high security locks
of pre industrial times (18th century and
earlier) had keys which looked typical
of the period; they were simple but
competently produced warded keys.
However should the key fall into the
wrong hands and an attempt to open
its lock the key would simply rotate and
the illicit user would likely assume that
it was either the wrong key or the lock
was faulty.
The key, in effect, was the means of
communicating what was in the owner’s
head to the lock. A sequence of turns,
reverse turns, partial turns and even
pushing in or pulling out slightly at very
specific points in the lock was required;
and like today’s combination locks, a
mistake meant that the sequence had
to be restarted from the beginning. But
unlike today’s mass produced locks, the
fact that these locks were handmade
meant that this ‘combination’ for
all intentional purposes was in fact
unique.
Examples of ordinary looking 18th
century keys; they wouldn’t attract
attention, on a key ring, as to the
security nature of the lock they operated.
This key for a 17th century
nightlatch looks more like
something a 19th century lady
would use to lace up her boots.
LOCKSMITHJOURNAL.CO.UK | JUL/AUG 2018
Sponsored by APECS
Another ‘key’ for a padlock this time a
perforated plastic card; it conveniently
slips into a wallet or purse and wouldn’t
necessarily be associated with a lock.