The medieval world was a world of iron.
The blacksmiths were very important people in the medieval ages.
They were widely respected in the medieval society because they made and repaired keys, armour, chains,
metal tools and swords.
The term "blacksmith" comes from the activity of
"forging" iron or the "Black" metal - so named due to the
color of the metal after being heated The word “smith” comes from the same root as the word
“smite”, and refers to someone who makes a living by hammering metal
The term "forging" means to shape metal by heating and hammering.These people usually work with wrought iron and steel and give shapes to them using the hammer,anvil and the chisel.
They had many beliefs and superstitions like the following.The term "forging" means to shape metal by heating and hammering.These people usually work with wrought iron and steel and give shapes to them using the hammer,anvil and the chisel.
BLACKSMITHING
SUPERSTITIONS
1.A blacksmith’s first sale,usually a coin or some
denomination, is kept under his anvil to remind him that only when he is
hammering at the anvil is he making money.
2 .Ringing the anvil keeps the Devil at bay.
3. Cross your
long handle fire tools over the fire pot after putting out the fire for the day
to keep the devil out.
Some of the tools created by blacksmiths
However with the growth of civilization, the concept of blacksmithing changed.As steel became more common and more reliable,blacksmith'magic 'changed and was replaced with science as in almost all areas.
Some of the tools created by blacksmiths
Here's some more blacksmith superstitions:
ReplyDelete1)when the blacksmith removes the horseshoe the luck remains with the shoe,if the horse throws the shoe the luck is gone.
2)Keep a hand forged nail in your coin purse and that purse will never be empty
The smith and the carpenter have a tradition of not setting horse shoes or handling nails on Good Friday in respect for how they were used on that day
ReplyDeleteMedieval Blacksmithing
ReplyDeleteThe medieval world was a world of iron. The Age of Bronze was over for much of the world, and the Age of
Steel had yet to fully come. This paper investigates the role of blacksmith in medieval history.
During the Age of Bronze most metal tools and weapons were made of this alloy of copper and tin. It could
be melted and cast into many shapes, it could be worked relatively easily, would take an edge, and was actually harder
than pure iron. The two metals, copper and tin, could be refined with relative ease from ore. In fact, it was this refining
process which may have been the origin of “magic”, where one common substance could be changed into another, more
valuable substance through mysterious and hard to understand methods.
The word “smith” comes from the same root as the word “smite”, and refers to someone who makes a living
by hammering metal. A “blacksmith” was one who hammered iron (“black copper”), as opposed to tin, copper, gold, or
silver. Helmet makers, armorers, sword makers, and blacksmiths inhabited and helped define the medieval world.
Iron was known from prehistoric times in the form of meteoric iron. This was a nickel-iron alloy with very
good properties. King Tut had a small meteoric iron dagger on him when he was buried, and the Eskimos made tools
from iron obtained from a meteorite (this meteorite was subsequently stolen by Admiral R. Peary). This “magical”
metal was far superior to bronze, but no one yet knew how to make it. A thousand years would pass before
experimentation and accident would lead to the smelting of iron from ore. This happened at different times in different
places, allowing the Age of Bronze and the Age of Iron to co-exist for centuries.
Your interesting comments will enlighten us all the more.Thank you.
DeleteHello Mam!
ReplyDeleteIf we are talking about iron from a chemistry point of view then its necessary that students should know about different compositions of iron otherwise called as types. It is divided into two types namely cast irons and steels which are subsets of a bigger superset which we call as iron. There is a compositional difference between cast irons and steels otherwise they have same major constituents.
Further, iron can be divided category wise cast iron: white cast iron, gray cast iron, spheroidal cast iron etc all of them have different properties and applications.
Also steels can be classified as stainless, maraging, martempered, austenized etc.
Needless to say it will be a productive task for the students to find the composition and application of these types of steels.
Interesting information.We will try to work on these at some point.
ReplyDelete