‘Sheesh, more anvils?’, says the anvil cynic among us. However, even the casual anvil enthusiast will appreciate this wonderful ‘how to’ on how to create your very own anvil out of clay, and so it is to the anvil purists among us that this is dedicated. Admittedly, in this ‘how to’ there are steps that are skipped and/or brushed over, and the photos leave much to be desired. So, take this instead as a primer to get your anvil juices flowing.
Here goes…
I will begin with some images below of the first two anvils that I created. I used a real anvil as the form for both of these. The anvil I used as the form is a small anvil, maybe 9 lbs., and it will be shown in some of my later photos. The anvil on the left had a cat added to its top after the anvil shape itself was complete, a cat with a blue beard and male pattern baldness. Don’t let his wizened appearance fool you though, he is spry as hell; all sinew and spit. The anvil on the right was modified to make it appear more robust than the actual anvil form that I used. They were both bisque fired, then painted with underglazes, and an additional clear glaze added before the glaze firing.
So, now that you have an idea of what to expect, I will now begin with the steps taken to create a larger anvil. For this larger anvil I used the anvil on the right in the pictures above as my form. Here are the steps I took and some accompanying photos.
Step 1.—Cover the anvil that is going to be used as the form in plastic wrap, then coat the plastic wrap in cooking spray; this allows the clay to release from the form when it is cut away, as otherwise the moist clay will stick and lose its shape when attempting to remove it. The other anvil in the image is the real anvil I spoke of earlier that I initially used as the form for the others. Notice that it is not that much larger than the ceramic anvil in the picture, as clay shrinks when it is drying and again when it is fired.
Step 2.—I begin covering the top of the anvil with slabs of clay that have been rolled out to about 5/16 of an inch thick. For this project, I used a paper clay that I must admit I have only used once before. I’d suggest using a stoneware instead, as I think it is easier to work with. Some proficiency at hand-building is required/desired to do this project.
Step 3.—I continue to build up the top part of the anvil. In these images, I am showing the horn added, but I have also extended the face since the proportions were becoming sloppy/off.
Step 4.—I have completed the top of the anvil, and now I have cut it in half to remove it from the form. Notice the bare seams on the inside, these need to be worked/sealed and reinforced with additional clay for added strength.
Step 5.—In this image you can see the upper part of the anvil has been rejoined. In the foreground is the lower part of the anvil, which was not made using the form but instead was simply constructed from slabs using the newly constructed top part for measurements/proportions.
Step 6.—The two sections have been fused and now the anvil is ready to dry before firing. Once bone dry I am going to lightly scrape down the surface in an attempt to smooth it out.
I am just now aware that the above explanation is probably the best ever offered on the construction of clay anvils.
Just a note—I did a fair amount of modification to the anvil that I did not note above, to maintain the look and proportions of the anvil. The greater you increase the size of the anvil from the form used the more difficult it is to maintain the proportions, and so I had to extend the horn even more, beef up the base, etc., all based on look and feel.
I will follow-up once my anvil has been bisque fired, and is ready to be glazed.
I hope you enjoyed my ‘how to’ on creating an anvil from clay.
Peace out, and stay tuned.