In Ritual Of The Death Hearth, I have a Celtic blacksmith character that provides valuable help and information to the protagonist as well as a vital clue in a subplot that runs through the story line of fictional Celts living in the fictionalized 400s A.D. setting. I did extensive research on the Celts of Ireland, the British Isles and on the Continental Celts for my murder mystery series and am always interested in learning more. So imagine my fascination when I found a blog post by author Ali Isaac about ancient Celtic blacksmiths.

At aliisaacstoryteller you will find an interesting and informative interview and pictures of Dan Crowther, a modern Celtic Blacksmith, at work.

Dan Crowther making a simple hook at “Connecticut Irish Festival” in New Haven, CT – USA 2010

Dan in his own words: “I’d been a blacksmith (mostly in a hobbyist capacity) for nearly a decade when in 1998 this passion combined with my historical interests. As a result, my wife and I founded the reenactment group Ancient Celtic Clans. Now, one of the advantages ACC has is that Sarah and I are both blacksmiths. This is key because almost without exception every other Celtic skill, either directly or indirectly, needs a blacksmith to make tools for them. It also means that we can recreate all the period correct tools we might need when learning any other new skill. This core dependence on the blacksmith was just as true back in 300BC as it is for our group today. It was very rare for a community not have at least one blacksmith.”

You can visit Dan’s site at Ancient Celtic Clans and Ali’s at aliisaacstoryteller

I hope you will take time to visit Ali Isaac and read through her many interesting articles. While there, make sure to check out her two current books The Fenian King and The Four Treasures of Eirean