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Amazing French Anvil Collection
If you’re interested in seeing the world’s biggest anvil that weighs in at 4,057 lbs., you need to travel to France. If you love old anvils, the trip will be worth it because you’ll be able to check out the amazing Lesoutils Demagic anvil collection housed in a 215,000 sq. ft. warehouse near Epinal, France. The collection also features vises and other tools.
“My passion is to bring anvils back to life. I also sell them because it allows me to meet new people and share this passion with them,” says Demagic, who owns the collection.
The most iconic French anvil is called a pig because of its four legs and shape. But collectors are most interested in 16th through early 19th century anvils built by blacksmiths without using molds.
“They were not only trying to make an effective tool, but they were also trying to make a work of art,” Demagic says.
His collection includes French cutler anvils with humps to stretch metal for knife blades. He also has one with four horns in different shapes to shape sheet metal. At 34 lbs., it was likely used by a goldsmith. His smallest anvil, 3 lbs., was used by a jeweler in the 16th or 17th century and has sculptures of faces on it. He found his oldest anvil in a barn. When he removed the green paint that covered it, he saw the date, 1566 or 1568.
It will take several years to clean all the anvils he’s collected, but Demagic has many for sale to collectors and to use in blacksmith shops. He posts often on Instagram and Facebook and sells worldwide. Buyers often buy a pallet of anvils and resell some of them. Shipping to the U.S. runs about $600/pallet, but Demagic negotiates with buyers for free delivery on orders of more than 3,500 Euros (about $4,000).
If you are looking for new anvils made in the U.S., check out Anvil Brand (www.anvilbrand.com) which makes a variety of anvils that are poured in a Texas foundry and heat-treated and polished at other U.S. locations. The anvils are used by farriers, blacksmiths, jewelers, competitors and hobbyists with shops. They range from 34 to 260 lbs.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Lesoutils Demagic, Epinal, France (anvilsandtoolsforsale@gmail.com; www.anvilsandtoolsforsale.com).


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2022 - Volume #46, Issue #2