There is a very interesting question from standing bear at the comments on the Celtic iron video. Maybe someone has an answer . . . a question. its a big one. so lets get super primitive here. if i were going to smith primitively i could do what you did by making the raw steel from the ore. ok so ive got steel to make a drifts and punches first, ground and polished with stones so i could then pound out a rough hammer with more stones as used to refine the bloom and then refine the face with grindstones. so i have now have a steel hammer. but heres the big question. what did i use to retrieve the bloom from the furnace and hold it while we refined it with rocks and to hold the small bits to forge the drifts and hammer? this is the old, which came first the chicken or the egg type question. how could you hold the bloom if you had no steel to make yer tongs to hold the bloom? lol. all i could think of to pound the bloom on without picking it up to the anvil would not be to lift it but to dig a hole and plop yer anvil stone into it, burying it with the flattest face up of course, packed tight all around. you just bust the furnace wall to the ground and roll it onto the anvil a few feet away. then two people each holding the ends of 3in green saplings, hewn flat in the middle, about 5 ft long, kneeling with the ends between their knees to hold them steady, quickly make a few revolutions of rope around them, squeezing the bloom to keep it from rolling around. maybe a VERY well hafted granite hammerstone in a hardwood handle could be an accurately-aimed hammer unlike the awkward-looking ones held in the hands like i saw you guys use. more downward smushing force and less chance of burns. when the saplings maybe burn into you have replacements right there waiting in a pile. to turn the bloom on the anvil one guy unties his end, spreads the poles and you flip the bloom with sticks, then he reties the ends, then you pound the bloom more. then after drawing it out and refining it, you could then forge a punch and drifts to make a hammer eye, forge a hammer and then on a flattish anvil stone forge some decent tongs. does this sound right? something has to be made first and it cant be tongs. at least that what im assuming. awesome vids you have here. i find the super old ways very inspiring and educational. my personal motto is remember the old ways. im scot/irish/cherokee/creek. i have a deep love of smithing and fool with it a bit myself on an amateur level. ive always wondered what came first, anvil, tongs or hammer. you seem to be the guys who would know. and i would love to see you guys trying the sapling tongs and buried anvil method. that would be so cool. thanks for all the wonder videos! yer beautiful people making beautiful art while keeping the old ways alive. we have to remember where we came from. without those old skills we wouldnt be here. https://youtube/watch?v=gi1f2dd_dMM
Posted on: Sun, 05 Oct 2014 06:33:30 +0000
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