Just read that a medieval anvil could weigh over 500 pounds

Found it in a footnote of a book on old tools from the library. Makes you appreciate how they moved that stuff without forklifts. How do you guys handle moving your big anvils?

4 comments

4 Comments

laura_schmidt823mo ago

My buddy who does blacksmith demos said they'd often just tip them onto logs and roll them.

jennifer8333mo ago

Those anvils weigh like 400 pounds.

michaeltorres3mo agoMost Upvoted

That's a crazy way to move something that heavy. Laura_schmidt82, your buddy's method sounds like a broken back waiting to happen. Just the thought of tipping 400 pounds onto logs makes my spine hurt. I can't imagine doing that on anything but flat, perfect ground.

dakota4151mo ago

I read an article in an old blacksmithing magazine from the 1980s that said those old-time smiths used to roll anvils on water pipes, not logs. They'd put two pipes under the base, roll it forward, grab the back pipe, and put it in front again. Still crazy dangerous if the ground isn't totally flat, but at least the pipes don't split under the weight like a log might. With logs, you'd have to hope the grain is straight or it'll just crack in half and dump that 400 pound hunk of steel right on your foot. I've moved a few smaller anvils around 150 pounds with a hand truck and that was plenty sketchy. Can't imagine trying to wrangle something twice that heavy with just logs and good intentions.