In this article I return to the objects on the site starting with an ‘A’ for Anvil.
The Anvils
The Workshops own a small collection of anvils. The origin of these is yet to be determined. They are all of the typical 300 lb (3 cwt, approx.136 kg) variety and probably come from local farms. In the past many farms had blacksmith shops in the same way that farmers today have welding machines. There may be some of our collection that were original items that were returned, but many steel items like this were removed when the Workshops closed in the late seventies.
An anvil is the basis of working with metal. It is the solid surface on which metal can be shaped. The earliest ‘anvils’ were hard stone and the first discovered metals, copper and lead, were hammered with stones. At the time of the Bronze Age the first anvils were produced and then upgraded to iron when that metal was discovered. It can be said that blacksmithing is as old as humanity. The ‘modern’ anvil is made of wrought iron or cast steel but the top is especially hardened steel to handle the blows on objects under the blacksmith’s hammer. As well as the flat surface the anvil has a horn. The part closest to the body of the anvil consists of a small step and small flat table. The remainder of the horn is rounded almost coming to a point. These three areas can be used in various ways by the blacksmith to shape large pieces of highly heated metal.
At the other end of the anvil are two holes. The small round one is called the Pritchell hole and is usually used to punch holes in metal while the second larger square one is called the Hardie hole and it is also used to take smaller shaping tools called anvil swages.
Large anvils were, for a time, used as boat moorings but as they became less common and more valued for their intended use or heritage their value rose greatly. From personal experience 25 years ago, one of this size that I tried to buy at a clearance sale went for $750 and today they cost well in excess of $1000. [1]
The diagram is in the public domain but originates with Gerald G. and is annotated by Andy Dingley.
Two of the Yarloop Workshops collection of anvils.
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[1] The ‘Phoenix Rises Very Slowly’ Part 9, by Allan Ward.