ABSTRACT
This essay provides a unique look at iron-working through the eyes of a modern but "traditional" blacksmith who is also a professor of anthropology. Charles Keller specializes in a "cognitive" approach to iron-working, that is, how a person knows (and learns) what he needs to know in order to progress from the raw material of smelted iron to the finished object. Like Sarah Wis-seman, he is an experimental archaeologist who achieves firsthand familiarity with the material by making a series of modern replicas of ancient implements. This process gives both Keller and his students a keener appreciation for the craftsmanship of the original artifacts.
