Pitchfork

For other uses, see Pitchfork (disambiguation).

A pitchfork next to a compost bin.

A pitchfork is an agricultural tool with a long handle and long, thin, widely separated pointed tines (also called prongs) used to lift and pitch (throw) loose material, such as hay or leaves. Pitchforks typically have only three or four tines while dung forks have four or five, other types of fork even up to ten tines with different lengths and spacing depending on purpose. They are usually made of steel with a long wooden handle, but may also be made from wood, wrought iron, bamboo, alloy etc. In some parts of England a pitchfork is known as a prong and, in parts of Ireland, a sprong refers to a 4 pronged pitchfork. The pitchfork is similar to the shorter and sturdier garden fork.

The pitchfork and scythes has frequently been used as a weapon by those who couldn't afford or didn't have access to more expensive weapons such as swords, or, later, guns. As a result, pitchforks and scythes are stereotypically carried by angry mobs or gangs of enraged peasants.

In Europe, the pitchfork was first used in the early Middle Ages, at about the same time as the harrow. The pitchfork was originally made entirely of wood; today, the tines are usually made of hard metal.

Symbolism, literary and artistic references

Pitching hay

Artistic usage

Arguably the most notable American artistic display of a three-pronged pitchfork is in American Gothic, the painting by Grant Wood. In this painting it symbolizes hand labor. Less famous are paintings by various artists which depict a wide variety of pitchforks and other tools in use and at rest.

Political usage

Because of its association with peasantry, the pitchfork is often a populist symbol and part of the nickname of populist leaders, thus:

• "Pitchfork Ben" (Benjamin Tillman)
• "Pitchfork Pat" (Pat Buchanan)

The Gangster Disciples, a street gang in the midwestern United States, use a three-pointed pitchfork as one of their symbols.^{[citation needed]}

Religious symbolism

The pitchfork is often used in satire of Christian demonology in popular media, especially in early humorous cartoons where a popular joke was a caricature of an angel and a pitchfork-wielding devil sitting on the shoulders of the protagonist. (However it is a trident that the devil is wielding, not a pitchfork.)

The Helenistic deity Pluto wields a bident, a two-pronged weapon strikingly similar in form to a pitchfork.

See also

• Trident
• Fork (disambiguation)