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I Forge Iron

Anvils in Iceland


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Just took a family trip to Iceland (amazing place!)  Pictured are the anvils and related things I ran across.  

First 3 pics are the replica displays from the Saga Museum in Reykjavik.  Forge, tools and stone anvil.  They had an iron anvil appropriate to the Norse Settlement period in the display as well but they had cut a hole in it for a red light so the work piece above would "glow" and it looked crummy enough that I didn't snap a photo.   IMG_1935.thumb.jpg.24648cf739f4b18580f6bdf8806e1762.jpg

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Next a sweet BRONZE axe with an IRON embedded edge!  From the National Museum, also settlement era.  What a wild casting!  This museum had some great iron artifacts but was so dim to preserve the pieces that photos were all a failure.  

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If you have ever wondered what the Icelandic delicacy of rotted preserved shark tastes like, I recommend continuing to wonder rather than actually finding out what it tastes like.  But the farmstead/shark museum at Bajarnahofn (near Stykkishholmur) is the place to find out.  Also they have a good collection of old farm tools including a germanic leg vise, 2 stake anvils one of which is set in a BIG (1000 pound?) piece of volcanic hexagonal basalt rock, and a cute little salesman sample.  Oh, and a couple of little Swedish forges.  

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The folk/maritime museum in Akranes has an awesome working/teaching shop with a bunch of Swedish/English (and one sad lonely south german) anvils.  Not to mention the kick a&& Demore power hammer they said they found sitting in a farmer's field!  They have hosted international gatherings and I'm gong to try like hell to get back for the next one.  

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And finally we were back in Reykjavik with some time to kill before the flight and while walking up one of the tourist trap streets full of bars and "craft" stores we spotted a small Peter Wright in the window of a closed jewelry store(glare made for a poor photo) but across the street was a clothing store with an older Peddinghaus in the window, unfortunately bedecked with something knitted and cute.  

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Anvils are everywhere!

 

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Cool pictures! Thanks for sharing.

That anvil in the jewelry store just reminded me the time I walked in a jewelry store in Oulu, Finland. And noticed a bunch of nice axes and knives in the very middle of the shop. You could touch them as they were in an open display :)

Bests:

Gergely

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