In de erfenis-wetten van de Westfaalse stadjes Geseke en Rüthen staan lijsten opgesteld met smidse gereedschappen. Hierdoor krijg je een leuk inkijkje in wat voor dingen een smid moest hebben om te kunnen werken én hoe die toen genoemd werden.

In the laws on inheritance of the Westphalian towns of Geseke and Rüthen one can find lists of smithy tools. It gives a nice insight into what tools a smith needed to have and what their names were.


Geseke, c. 1360-70

Wat men ghevet tho der smede herwede. Dat beste anebelte, is dar nicht dan eyn dat selvet hort dar to, sint dar mer, de anderen bliven in der were, twe blasbelge eyn hanthamer und eyn vorhamer, eyn scherven tange und eyn hant tange, eyn scredere, eyn spunt nagel yseren, eyn hofnagel yseren, eyn hofhamer, eyn hoftange, scufyseren, zentyseren, hofmest, de esen quast, de wellenlepel, hertyseren, eyn underyseren, eyn spankrampe, eyn stempel, eyn dorslach und dat scortevel.

'What is given to the smiths inheritance. The best anvil, is it not there then one that belongs thereto too, are there more, then the others stay in the inheritance, two bellows, a handhammer and a forehammer, a plate pair of plyers and a hand pair of plyers, an anvil chisel, a rivet nail iron, a hoofnail iron, a hoofhammer, a hoof pair of plyers, shoveliron, 'zent?' iron, hoofknife, an ashes brush, the welding spoon, hearth iron, a underiron, a tensionclamp, a stamp, a nail punch and an apron.'


Rüthen, 14th c.

Wer et eyne Smyt do ghvet he tho dussen vorgen. dingen est se da synt, syne blaasbeelghe, synen hanthamer, eyn lopen, eynen hofhamer, eyne hoftangen, eyn scorthevel und eyn scufyseren.

'Is it a smith, then he gives in addition to the forsaid things, if they are there, his bellows, his handhammer, a small shovel, a hoofhammer, a hoof pair of plyers, an appron and a shoveliron.'