Rod Iron Railing And It's Ornamental Ironwork

The general name rod iron today references any mild steel that has that appearance of being worked by hand or "wrought" which means by hand. Therefore, wrought iron was simply iron heated and then formed by a blacksmith into gates, fences and other things that required strength and an attractive appearance. Today, the term Rod Iron Railing references any ornamental ironwork.

For centuries, people have worked iron because of its value for its durability and strength, which they required for keeps and castles. They used the first iron wrought bars to strengthen walls and doors to stop keep invaders from entering. Later in the fifteenth century with the rise of the blast heaters, that large scale use of decorative iron became possible. The fences and gates that encircled a castle or house could now become satisfying to the eye even when they had a more serious purpose.

The fleur-de-lis is a key example of the use of wrought iron as an embellishment. They placed the pointed tip on fence posts tops as an acceptance to aesthetics. The real reason was it was to keep peasants from sneaking over the fence. If they did crawl, under some how they could be pulled back down and be impaled. However, without them crawling over the fence it appear pleasing to the eye.



Conceivably the most celebrated illustration of wrought or Rod Iron Railing adorns the bars and balconies of New Orleans French Quarter. The French fashion styling reflects the ancestry of the city. What is not well- known is that slaves brought in from the Caribbean did the bulk of this work. Plenty of them first learned the iron working business and then they passed it on to generations.

The person who works with the iron is known as a blacksmith, or a farrier in England. The name came from the color black  of the iron and smith came from the phrase to smite. It has a lot of stories and a very long history. The men the story says had enormous arms and chests from all that tossing about of iron around day each day. A blacksmith was not someone you messed with back in the olden days.

Genuine wrought iron has gone the path industrially produced goods today. A Rod Iron Railing is used chiefly for protection and not ornamentation. However, there has been a somewhat of a return of the smithy in current years. There are some competitions for blacksmiths, and there may be somewhat of a comeback for the rod iron trade. The wish for one-of-kind and for hand-made artwork appears to be on the increase. It is either that or perhaps some one is still concerned about the peasants trying to get over the fence.