Door Stops

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Sometime or somewhere in the earliest days of evolution, a door needed to be kept open. Thus was born a "door stop". Then, it might have been a small, weighty rock the size of a child's head that kept the door to a home open to allow air to flow through freely. In medieval times, this implement of household necessity graduated to actual shapes and forms with depictions of heroes or royal medallions. Some even, bore mystical connotations to ward off evil: a vulture or a gargoyle to frighten off the enemy. In these cases, it is likely that the massive doors required a stabilizer to keep them from flying off their hinges in the wind. In New England, for example, it wasn't unusual to see one of those heavy, antique clothing irons or large, black cast iron crickets used for this purpose. Clearly, the reverse situation is true today.

Contemporary Doorstops
Contemporary homes and buildings no longer require stops to keep doors open. In most cases, these door stops keep doors from banging against a nearby wall. The purpose has changed quite significantly. Since most contemporary buildings and homes are air controlled for all seasons, the former use became obsolete. However, in terms of a means of preventing damage to walls and floor molding, a simple brass or metal stop with a rubber tip serves the purpose quite well. These are relatively inexpensive and maintenance-free. You can also find a stop similar to a cabinet hinge where it has limited movement in the door hinge itself. At present, most homes and buildings are equipped with some kind of rubber door stops for convenience sake.

A Unique Hobby
There are collectors who scour flea markets, estate sales and garage sales in search of antique stops. In fact, collectors have created an entire medium whereby they exchange their most unique and valuable stops online or in groups. While this is quite a difference from stamp or coin collecting, the challenge is to obtain the oldest and most unusual pieces to add to a collection.

The Future of Door Stops
One may imagine that in the future, a tiny cell installed on floor moulding that sends a remote code to another cell attached to the base of doors, will be the stop of the future. Or, it's possible that the stop could be controlled by a computer mouse while shopping on line for a more advanced state-of-the-art stop. There will always be a need for privacy which precipitates the need for a door. Where there is a door, it is inevitable that some protection from marring and damage to walls will necessitate the use of a stop. Futuristic door stops might even coordinate with burglary, fire or water damage protection. The possibilities for use of this implements in the future is virtually unlimited.