The oldest rattles date from about 4,500 years ago in the Middle East. Speculation has given them other roles besides toys, such as warding off evil spirits (through the sounds a rattle makes). “But perhaps parents also needed to distract their children now and then so that they could have a bit of peace and quiet to themselves. Today, we use screens; back then it was rattles,” notes archaeologist Mette Marie Hald from the National Museum of Denmark in Copenhagen.

Earliest rattles were made of wood or clay. While early examples are unmarked, those dating from the 18th century and beyond were more likely to be made of silver and should have hallmarks, usually found on the handle mount.

According to the website for the British AC Silver Co. “Early rattles featured coral handles…(because) a coral handle was the perfect antidote for teething babies, as it was both smooth and cool. (Also), coral was considered to be a means of guarding a child against witchcraft,” a belief dating back to Roman times “where babies’ cradles would be festooned with coral hung on string to defer evil forces. Although this practice declined, the reputation of coral as a protective device continued.” Some of these rattles used mother of pearl or ivory handles rather than coral for a baby to chew.

At least intuitively aware that later fancy rattles with multiple pieces could pose hazards to babies playing with them directly, many of the early 18th- and 19th-century examples were made for the belts of moms or nursemaids, where they could be shaken to distract a restive baby rather than given to the baby directly. Some portraits of babies show rattles pinned to their dress or hung around their neck.

Hazards from some rattles have continued into the present day. In 2006, the iconic Tiffany Co. paid a $262,500 fine for failure to report a hazard posed by its silver infant teething rattle. The circular rattle contained a central bar that was vulnerable to breakage and the release of the small animal figures on the bar, which posed a choking risk to babies; in at least one of three reported examples of breakage, a tiny animal was found in the baby’s mouth – luckily, before he had time to swallow it. In the settlement, “Tiffany denies it violated the Consumer Safety Protection Act by failing to report defects with its…rattles in a timely manner.” By the way, these rattles retailed for a mere $150!

The famous Jean-Jacques Rousseau was not a fan of rattles or other toys, not because they were physically dangerous to babies but because they were, shall we say, frivolous. “A little twig covered with its own leaves and fruit, – a poppy-head, in which the seeds can be heard rattling, – a stick of liquorice (sic) he can suck and chew, these will amuse a child quite as well as the splendid baubles, and will not disadvantage him by accustoming him to luxury from his very birth” (Rousseau, Jean-Jacques. Émile, ou De l’éducation). 

Peggy Whiteneck is a writer, collector, and dealer living in East Randolph, VT. If you would like to suggest a subject that she can address in her column, email her at  allwritealready2000@gmail.com. ​