Featured Is This A Joiners Mallet? Or Does It Have Another Name/Purpose?

It's huge: the head is 6 inches diameter an' 4 inches high; the total weight is just an ounce under 4 pounds. All surfaces except the face (pic 6) are sealed with a high-gloss varnish...why? There's little evidence of use at all.
Perhaps it is more a stone-sculptors tool, as heavy as it is?
I dunno...I'm seriously over my head here, an' y'all may have an answer.
I can only hope...an' thanks for lookin'!

 

Interesting.

 

I dunno, but looks like there's enuf varnish on it!!!

 

Wood carving with chisels,cabinet making,similar piece... https://www.workshopheaven.com/workshop-heaven-3-1-2-round-beech-mallet/

https://toolbug.co.uk/english-uk-made-round-carving-mallet/

 

Looks like Holly's hit the nail,or should i say tenon-on the head.

 

I would certainly go for it being a sculptors mallet, for either wood or stone.

 

Not being a sculptor, I can't even imagine how one would use this mallet. It's so large and heavy, I think I could hold it for about 5 minutes and then have to take a little rest. Did Michelangelo have huge arm muscles after sculpting David?

 

Michelangelo probably used a Dremel!

Interesting film here on stone mason hopefuls, seen here using such a mallet, though modern ones seem to be made from a different material.

 

Why is the varnish only off the top, and not the sides?

It looks like it was used in that way.

 

The last pic shows the only un-varnished surface...an' that's the bottom, not the top. I have no clue why.

 

They are often put down on the top face and stored that way, so this would get a lot of scuffing etc. This is usual. But, I think that someone has re varnished the mallet, probably while it was top down on a table or something. This has been varnished since it was used as a mallet, probably so it would look prettier on display.

 

THAT was an AWESOME VIDEO....Thanks for posting @the blacksmith !!!!