Adam Cherubini
>You just need more data. Probate inventories usually include prices (that's their function afterall). By looking at many inventories, you can get a sense for the value of individual items, at a given time and place. You can then make an educated guess based on the values given. That's the best any of us can do. No serious or "real" historian does any better. All of it is sort of like a court case. You base your conclusions on the evidence available. Unlike a court case, it can be helpful ot have a "feel" for the period.

For instance: There is NO evidence of the back saw before 1720 or 30. But the Plumely inventory includes tenannt saws that are really expensive. So some (Jay Gaynor for one) have suggested that the very well equipped Charles Plumley may have had back saws in 1708. Of course we don't know for sure. But this is an example of how probate records are used for this sort of thing. Personally, I don't think Moxon described a back saw. My guess is the tool was invented sometime between Moxon and Plumley.

Adam