Frank Trommer is one of the few people in Germany who knows how metal objects were made over 2,500 years ago. The trained blacksmith and state-certified monument conservator is an "archaeotechnician". His workshop is located in Blaubeuren near Ulm. He and his team mainly work for museums and universities. In his work, he is concerned with preserving craft techniques that have largely been lost.
For the craftsmanship, he smelts iron ore in a clay furnace. Just as the Celts did around 700 BC. During the smelting process, he obtains the so-called "Luppe", a mixture of iron and slag. This is merely an intermediate product that Trommer and his employees process further. They forge the pig iron several times and fold it. Until a usable quality is achieved. They then turn the "race iron" into a modern kitchen knife that is so sharp that it can cut through a sheet of paper with ease.
In the video:
Frank Trommer, blacksmith
Credits:
Author: Wolfgang Dürr
Camera: Marc Bürkle, Klaus Woller
Editing: Klaus Kübel
Editor: Rolf Hüffer
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