Primitive wood working tool?

[skipskip]

I need to name this fellow.

23 inches long

shaped like a chisel the long way

shingles?

bark removal ?

or the ever popular "cooper's tool"?

aug287 by Skip Albright, on Flickr

aug284 by Skip Albright, on Flickr

aug285 by Skip Albright, on Flickr

[lptools]

At first I thought it was a cane knife or a billhook, but it looks like it doesn't have a cutting edge near the hook. A splitting tool, like a froe??

[wvtools]

It is a bark spud, used to remove bark from a log. 

[p_toad]

interesting tool.   reminds me of a flensing knife.

[mvwcnews]

interesting tool.   reminds me of a flensing knife.

Been re-reading Moby Dick lately?  Imagine that "green behind the ears" young man  waking up next to a tatooed Samoan in 182x.  Would have been a real eye opener for sure.