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I Forge Iron

Blacksmithing Superstitions


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Saint Eligius is the patron saint of goldsmiths and other metalworkers


December first is the day
Patron Saints Index: Saint Eligius

Wikipedia's writeup is kinda fun
Saint Eligius - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


but there are others
Patron Saints Index: blacksmiths
* Brigid of Ireland feb 1st June 10th
* Dunstan may 19th
* Giles september 1st
* James the Greater e Greater" july 25th formerly august 5th
* Leonard of Noblac november 6th
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It's supposed to be bad luck to leave your hammer on the anvil........probably has to do with broken toes...........
James

James, I`ve never heard that one.....................................
I gotta get to my shop and move my hammer ! OPPS LOL:D
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Hammerkid,if your hammer is on your anvil in the shop.......and you're not in your shop,........you're probably safe.

I, on the other hand, have the bad habit of laying the hammer on the anvil while I'm fiddling with tongs , or stock, or something else.
That's where the danger of broken toes comes into play!

Maybe I should be wearing steel toed shoes..........there's an idea!
James

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I have an older cousin who is a great believer in luck , both good and bad( He's in his 70's.) He has told me stories of helping his grandfather( my greatgrandfather) at the forge.
Here's some of the superstitions I've heard;

That it is bad luck to forge a chain with 13 links

It's bad luck to start the day with a dirty forge
(one of my cousin's chores was to clean it out)

It's bad luck to accept payment before the job is finished

It's bad luck to let a finished piece leave the shop without getting paid.

It's supposed to be bad luck to reuse iron(or wood) from the site of a burned barn or house.

It's good luck for a cat to come to your shop and set up residence.

According to my mom, it's a sign of bad luck to bring farming tools into the house: hoes, rakes, shovels, etc.

One story I've heard goes like this;
A man brought an axe to a smith to be redressed.There was a big chip of steel missing from the cutting edge.
When the smith inquired about the missing piece, the guy who brought it explained that someone had been using it, the chip flew out and made a terrible gash on the guy's leg.
The wound had become infected, and the man had nearly died.

Upon hearing the story, the smith threw the axe down on the ground, declared
that it was a "bad luck piece" , and refused to touch it again.

My cousin says we've always been a superstitious bunch of folks around here.......

By the way, after my joking about 'broken toes' in this thread, I stubbed my toe badly...(wife moved the dresser)

Just a coincidence?....I don't know.............

James Flannery

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Upon hearing the story, the smith threw the axe down on the ground, declared
that it was a "bad luck piece" , and refused to touch it again.


By the way, after my joking about 'broken toes' in this thread, I stubbed my toe badly...(wife moved the dresser)

Just a coincidence?....I don't know.............

James Flannery



From now on you should throw your clothes on the floor and declare it's a bad luck dresser and you ain't a gonna touch it!

Frosty
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Frosty, Steve,.......you're both right!
The dresser is already a "bad luck piece" in my way of thinking.......
(That's how superstitions get started)!
And there's no 'law of Karma' that I know of that states that bad luck cannot become..........WORSE!;)

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