As human beings, we can't know everything. There's simply too much to know, including things we'd never even think to know. Things like the ones found in this list, for example.
But it's all good, because the people who asked what these things are actually got answers. It just goes to show you that everyone has things they know a lot about.
According to some very helpful Reddit comments, it's called a stock ticker. It would print the stock prices of a certain item as it changed. I really don't see this being useful in today's age, but it's still kind of cool.
Reddit user anthonynil had the answer: "It's a wire trellis system for a living wall. The weights at the bottom keep the wires taut."
So, it allows plants to live along the wall of the building. That's pretty neat, and sounds like it would be a super cool idea.
There were multiple similar yet slightly different answers for this. The Reddit comments seemed to agree that the holes were for posts, but they could've either been for tents and stalls, fences, or some kind of pathway. The ancient world sure was strange.
Well, they have to be from some kind of board game. But which one?
Well, no one actually knows, but it's got to be something from Europe. Thanks to Redditor gn_like_lasagna, we at least know the chips and bins are German in origin.
A few Reddit users chimed in on this one, and called it an old sea mine. That just so happens to be the right answer, too! What it's doing on land? My guess is it's probably a decoration these days.
Thanks to a bunch of Reddit detectives, OP figured it out. It actually says Sanitoy, or rather SaniToy, and it's a toy baseball bat, probably dating back to the 1950s.
Well, Reddit user ponytail1961 figured it out pretty quickly. It's "part of a vintage pool cue tip repair tool." Very specific, but since OP found it among their grandfather's things (who owned a pool table), it makes a lot of sense, actually.
To be honest, whatever kind of hat it ends up being, it doesn't look all that comfortable.
But in this case, it is, in fact, an old firefighting helmet. At least, that's what Reddit user sdorph says, and we really have no reason to believe that's untrue.
This is, apparently, from the ROK (Republic of Korea) Marines. Not really sure how OP got their hands on it, but it seems like it would be a pretty interesting keepsake regardless.
So, a metal thing with sand underneath found behind a bathroom wall? That's kind of strange.
According to Reddit user PKDickman, it's actually not that strange: "It is expanded steel lath and the mortar bed they laid your master bath floor tile on." Interesting.
Apparently, this is a frequently asked thing. So plenty of people have come across it before, and wondered the same thing this person has.
Redditor shockzone answered this question 4 years ago: "It's the Quick Chill Tray from a GE refrigerator." Easy enough.
So, according to Reddit user brock_lee, it's a gaff for fishing. You literally hook fish that are swimming right next to your boat. That's actually so cool, and not really what I'd expect the right answer to be.
These long pieces of glass look so delicate, just staring at them is stressing me out.
But they were actually used for lab work. annywhack on Reddit had this to say: "One on the left is a thistle funnel, or thistle tube. One on the far right is a fractionating column."
As for the one in the middle? According to Redditor markatango, it's a gas drying tube.
According to Reddit user reflected_shadow, this thing is some kind of candy stove. I definitely would never have thought of that just by looking at it, but some things out there really are unexpected. Either way, it's another mystery solved.
Apparently, this device is for measuring humidity levels inside the building. Since it's from ancient Roman times, that would make sense. Moisture could ruin the...ruins more.
So it's actually not related to the volcano that the city is so close to. Still interesting, though.
It looks like some kind of weird fishing rod. But you know it isn't that.
In fact, Redditor jackrats had a better answer: "The rod looks like a fiber glass wire pulling rod. Used to pull wires through walls. Someone seems to have taped a hook on the end. I guess they lost the hook that the rods come with which simply screws onto the end." And that's it!
There were a lot of different answers that could explain what this thing is. But it looks like the most likely (and popular) one is that it's some kind of sprinkler bulb. I'd say that's as good as we're going to get.
Thescubadave on Reddit identified these pointy gold things as gold testing strips, which are used to compare the color of any other thing made out of gold. I'm sure someone somewhere would find this thing useful, but it also kind of looks cool.
In my experience, random foreign objects you find in food are never a good thing (even if they aren't always a bad thing).
In this case, though, it's the top stem part of an avocado. Nothing gross, but nothing super edible either.
I don't go on a lot of planes, so I'd have no clue. Thankfully, there are people who know these things (who aren't me).
According to MrMarkusino on Reddit, "It's to make windows go dark. Bottom half darker. Upper half brighter. Also crew can change whole flight settings so you might not be able to change it." Makes sense.
