Summary

Sharpening Stone or Rag Stone, used by Sandor Sabo to sharpen his bootmaking tools, particularly his awls. It was made in 1950 and used from August 1950.

Sandor Sabo migrated to Australia from Yugoslavia in 1970. He was a trained bootmaker who, when working for himself made shoes using a simple range hand tools, without machinery that many larger businesses used. Mr Sabo began working in a bootmaker's workshop at the age of 10, when he was taken off the street to learn to make himself a pair of shoes. He completed his apprenticeship between the ages of 14 and 17 years. After working in Yugoslavia as a bootmaker for 18 years, he then spent two years working in Germany, after which he immigrated to Australia.

In Australia Mr Sabo worked at the Corvin shoe factory in Prahran for ten years, then at the Robin shoe factory in Huntingdale. He later worked at a golf shoe factory in Richmond. Whilst he was employed and in between employment Mr Sabo also made and repaired shoes at home by hand. He also worked at a wire factory and as a gardener.

Physical Description

Black stone, smooth and rounded to a point at one end, blunt and flat at the other end.

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