I understand it’s the style of hoe, I’m Portuguese and my father and grandfather had many quality Italian style hoes made from Italy, Spain, Germany ..it does seem to be of good quality I guess I just assumed it was authentic.
I purchased this product for a foreign national friend who is into gardening. The specific product was difficult to find. Upon receipt my friend was disappointed with the size of the handle as it was too small for him use. I didn't measure the handle to verify length of handle but He wanted it to be returned.
I saw some local Portuguese guys using this to strip sod and do some pulling and mixing of soil-so i bought one. What a great tool! Good design, strong components. Pulling, rather than digging or pushing, is much more efficient body movement and this tool maximizes that movement. I've now owned one for a decade and i have added other sizes to this collection, but this size is the most versatile. If there was a model with a longer handle, then i'd buy that too and use it for pulling down loam, mulch, etc.. from the back of my trucks into wheelbarrows.