The muffled sound of a blacksmith’s poker, the pungent smell of iron, the heat of the fire… all suggesting one of the most primitive crafts, the art of forging metals, that still lives on in workshops throughout our traditional country.
Iron, copper, brass, steel, used to make furnishings, sculptures, furniture, knives, are often perceived as cold and heavy materials, but for these artists-artisans, if necessary, they can show their vital and sinuous sides.
Well-known and internationally acclaimed, working for generations in Milan, are workshops that have now become historical. In Bologna too, there are workshops with the charm of yesteryear where precious furnishings, classic and modern, in the most varied shapes, are brought to life.
In Fermo, in the Marche region, since the Middle Ages, alongside wrought iron, copper has been worked into the so-called calderai or large pots and pans.
In the very quaint Medieval Village in the Parco del Valentino in Turin, there is the wrought-iron workshop where many great and skilled craftsmen create timeless objects.
In Tuscany, in the town of Stia, in the province of Arezzo, the European Biennial of the Blacksmith’s Art is held, with the World Championship in forging wrought iron takes place, not to be missed for fans of the sector.
An area in which Italy has world supremacy is undoubtedly cutlery. An example is Scarperia, in the Mugello in Tuscany, where in the 16th century, its products reached the most important Italian and European markets, and in 1930 there were about 120 knife shops. Today in the area there are some valuable cutting tool manufacturers. Or in Frosolone, the city with steel roots, knife making has ancient origins, as it also does in the Maniaghese area and Sardinia. This wealth of knowledge is still reflected in the highest quality knives, crafted with the greatest attention to detail.