I found this at a yard sale but had no idea what it was

A food mill is a manual kitchen tool used to:

Mash fruits and vegetables
Separate seeds from pulp
Create sauces
Make applesauce
Prepare baby food
Before electric blenders and processors, this was how households processed soft foods.

The crank turns a blade that presses food through a perforated plate, creating smooth texture while filtering out unwanted pieces.

It was simple. Efficient. Ingenious.

And suddenly, the mystery object made sense.

The Surprise of Realization
There’s a special moment when confusion turns into clarity.

The unknown becomes known.

The object shifts from “random yard sale item” to “functional artifact from another era.”

Holding it felt different now.

It wasn’t just metal and wood.

It was history.

Why We Don’t Recognize Old Tools Anymore
Here’s something fascinating:

Many tools that were once common household items are now unrecognizable to younger generations.