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Lawnmowing history...

One man went to mow.

The worlds first powered mower has taken to the grass once more after an exhaustive restoration by lawnmower nut Andrew Hall from Somerset.

Forerunner of all the machines that have graced British lawns on sunday afternoons through the decades since, This 1902 Ransome 3hp is a historic survivor from the Edwardian age when chauffers were given the task of grooming their masters lawns and the new fangled machines cost as much as a house.

The 1 1/4 ton leviathan cost £137 in 1903 - equivalent to a whopping £15,000 in todays money. In consequence they were only available to the very rich, but aristocratic one upmanship lead to a rapid 'lawnmower arms race' untill the first war intervened.

Although the first machine it still boasts many of the features still common a century later, 42inch blade, heavy roller, tiller steering, a huge grass box that could be emptied from the driver seat and adjustable blade height. Brakes however were a later innovation so much skill was required to pilot the huge contraptions.