After the woman took to social media to post an image of the strange items, many netizens took to the comments section to advise her on what they thought they were.

As it turns out, they appear to be vintage window weights!

For those who don’t know, vintage window weights are those heavy metal things you might find hidden inside the frame of older-style windows. They were a big deal back in the day because they helped those windows open and close smoothly.

But how do they work? You ask. Well, inside the window frame, there are pockets or channels where the weights hang out. They were usually made of cast iron and attached to cords or ropes that connect to the window sashes with pulleys. When the window was opened, these weights dropped down, balancing out the weight of the sashes and making it easier to move them up and down.

Vintage window weights were super common in houses built before all the fancy new window technology came along – older homes from the 1800s and early 1900s most likely had these bad boys in their windows.

But, as time went on and window technology improved, these old-school weights fell out of fashion. Nowadays, modern windows use things like counterbalance springs and high-tech materials for insulation and security. Plus, they’re way easier to maintain!