History

Records show that there has been an inn on the site since the mid-17th century. The current red-brick building, however, is undated.

The pub was the location for Courts leet

Court leet

The court leet was a historical court baron of England and Wales and Ireland that exercised the "view of frankpledge" and its attendant police jurisdiction, which was normally restricted to the hundred courts.-History:...

 and baron

Court baron

A Court baron is an English or Scottish manorial court dating from the Middle Ages.It was laid down by Sir Edward Coke that a manor had two courts, "the first by the common law, and is called a court baron," the freeholders being its suitors; the other a customary court for the copyholders...

 on behalf of Bucklebury manor, and was often part of the Chapel Row Fair. In 1790, the sons of George III

George III of the United Kingdom

George III was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of these two countries on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland until his death...

 attended a prize fight there between "Hooper", one of Lord Barrymore's men, and "Big Ben Brain". The bout lasted almost three-and-a-half hours and 180 rounds, and was eventually called a draw.

Name

The name comes from the blade bone

Scapula

In anatomy, the scapula , omo, or shoulder blade, is the bone that connects the humerus with the clavicle ....

 of a mammoth

Mammoth

A mammoth is any species of the extinct genus Mammuthus. These proboscideans are members of Elephantidae, the family of elephants and mammoths, and close relatives of modern elephants. They were often equipped with long curved tusks and, in northern species, a covering of long hair...

 that was killed by prehistoric hunters. The skeletal remains of the animal were found preserved in the silt of the Kennet Valley; the name "Bladebone" was used to refer to the pub by 1666. The bone is encased in copper

Copper

Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...

 and hangs from the front of the pub as the pub sign. The copper casing is regularly repaired, and the bone within has been found to be preserved in an excellent state.

Ownership

In 1922, the pub was bought by Strange's Brewery of Aldermaston

Aldermaston

Aldermaston is a rural village, civil parish and electoral ward in Berkshire, South-East England. In the 2001 United Kingdom Census, the parish had a population of 927. The village is on the southern edge of the River Kennet flood plain, near the Hampshire county boundary...

 for £3,500(equivalent to approximately £150,000 in 2008). The brewery already rented the pub – along with a portion of the Bucklebury

Bucklebury

Bucklebury is a village and civil parish in West Berkshire. The village is about north-east of Newbury and about north of the A4 road. It has a population of 2,066.-Geography:...

 estate – for £86 (£3,500 in 2008) per annum. The pub was later owned by Whitbread

Whitbread

Whitbread PLC is a global hotel, coffee shop and restaurant company headquartered in Dunstable, United Kingdom. Its largest division is Premier Inn, which is the largest hotel brand in the UK with around 580 hotels and over 40,000 rooms. Its Costa Coffee chain has around 1,600 stores across 25...

.

It is currently a free house

Free House

Free House may refer to:*Free House , an American Thoroughbred racehorse.*Free house , a British pub that is owned independently of the breweries that supply it....

, and regularly stocks ales from the West Berkshire Brewery

West Berkshire Brewery

The West Berkshire Brewery is a microbrewery in Yattendon, Berkshire, United Kingdom. Founded in 1995 by husband and wife Dave and Helen Maggs, the brewery grew out of its original brickworks shed in Frilsham and now brews exclusively in Yattendon at a rate of 80 barrels per week.- History :The...

.

In the arts

In the 1950s, Robert Still

Robert Still

Robert Still was an English composer, educator and amateur tennis player.Robert Still was born in London on 10 June 1910...

 composed The Ballad of the Bladebone Inn, inspired by the pub. Describing a tale explaining the name and sign of the pub, the composition's debut performance was at the Royal Festival Hall

Royal Festival Hall

The Royal Festival Hall is a 2,900-seat concert, dance and talks venue within Southbank Centre in London. It is situated on the South Bank of the River Thames, not far from Hungerford Bridge. It is a Grade I listed building - the first post-war building to become so protected...

 on 23 October 1957. Stanley Bayliss of The Musical Times

The Musical Times

The Musical Times is an academic journal of classical music edited and produced in the United Kingdom. It is currently the oldest such journal that is still publishing in the UK, having been published continuously since 1844. It was published as The Musical Times and Singing Class Circular until...

described the performance as "duly bucolic" with "pleasant tunes", but saw that it failed to send a "shiver down the spine."