Anvil and Hammers
Among objects that may undoubtedly be classed as tools are the small bronze anvil (fig. [22]), and the bronze socketed hammers (fig. [23]).
Fig. 22.—Bronze Anvil.
The anvil appears to be the only specimen which has been found in the British Islands, though examples are not uncommon in France. It resembles the small anvils used by jewellers, and it is interesting to note that, as M. Déchelette points out, these small bronze anvils correspond to those mentioned by Homer, which were also portable and used by goldsmiths.[13] Socketed bronze hammers resembling the Irish examples are fairly common in England and on the Continent. One well-known Irish specimen was found in the Douris hoard and is figured in Evans’s “Bronze Implements,” p. 179. Of the specimens illustrated, the largest was found at Abbeyshrule, Co. Longford, the exact locality of the others, further than that they were found in Ireland, is not known.
Fig. 23.—Bronze Hammers.