The Remarkable Hammer: Artistic, Historic and Curious Hammers through the Ages by Roy G Ysla

The beauty of hand tools is often overlooked. This book is a celebration of hammers, the workhorse of tools. It traces our oldest tool, from its prehistoric origins to the twentieth century. As civilizations grew more complex, so too did the need for specialized hammers. This book contains a cross section of 270, artistic, historic and sometimes odd hammers which are categorized into functional groups showing their diversity, inventiveness and beauty.

Contents include:

• Preface
• Forward
• Introduction
• Unfinished business
• History
• Anatomy of hammers
• Symbolism of hammers in language and ritual
• Hammers in music and art
• Personalizing Hammers
• Prehistoric and Bronze age hammers and axes
• Adze hammers
• Armorers' hammers
• Ball peen hammers
• Barristers' hammers
• Brass hammers
• Bong hammers
• Broom hammers
• Bung hammers
• Bushing and Crandell hammers
• Buttonhole hammers
• Carpenter's hatchet-hammers
• Caulking hammers
• Ceremonial or promotional hammers
• Chasing hammers
• Cheese testing hammers
• Chipping hammers
• Cigar box hammers
• Claw hammers
• Cobblers' hammers
• Combination hammers
• Crate hammers
• Cross peen hammers
• Cupping hammers
• Decorative hammers
• Diagonal peen hammers
• Drilling hammers
• Farriers' hammers
• File makers' hammers
• Fleam hammers
• Forging hammers
• Glazier's hammers
• Hammer-eye punch
• Hand or palm-held hammers
• Ice pick hammers
• Jewelry hammer, ancient Roman
• Jewelers, watchmakers and small metalsmithing hammers
• Key hammers
• Knapping hammers
• Machinist's hammers
• Macadam hammers
• Mallets, gavels and mason's hammers
• Marking hammers
• Mechanics' hammers
• Medical Reflex hammers
• Orthopedic hammers
• Piano tuning and adjusting hammers
• Planishing hammers
• Roofing or slate hammers
• Saw setting hammers
• Set hammers or flatteners
• Strap hammers
• Sugar hammers
• Tack hammers
• Tenderizing hammers
• Veneer hammers
• Veterinary hammers
• War hammers
• Glossary
• Bibliography
• Index