> My grandfather was a forger from ca. 1930-60, having been trained
> in his native country of Czechoslovakia. He made all of his own tools, and
> left behind a small forge, anvil, and more than 100 tongs, hammers,
> chisels, etc.
>
> Could someone tell me whether this material, which represents a
> small forger's workshop, has value, either monetary or historical? Thank
> you for any information.
> Nancy L. Benco
> Dept. of Anthropology
> George Washington University
> Washington, DC 20052
The tools have some value, of course. A good basic check is to search on
e-bay (try Collectables:Tools then search for blacksmith in titles and
descriptions) Anvils go for around $2 per pound in decent shape and make.
Tools suitable for silversmithing or armouring seem to get a premium, some
selling for close to $100. Tongs go for around $8-15.
Complete collections do not seem to bring in as much as individual pieces.
As a smith I have found that I can buy equipment much cheaper than e-bay
here in the mid-west. I have seen complete blacksmith's shops sell for
only a couple of thousand dollars.
As this has a family link; it would be nice if you can keep it in the
family. My great grandfather was a smith; but I have *nothing* that
he used or made. He was long gone before I took up smithing as a hobby
and had to laboriously search out all the equipment that he had examples
of in his shop.
Iron Age Antiques is a dealer in used smithing equipment on the eastern
seaboard.
Thomas Powers
Blacksmith, Bladesmith, Pattern Welder
Columbus, OH
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