The smithy was built in Vester Kærby east of Odense around 1700.

It belonged to the Østergaard estate and was handed down from mother to daughter for four generations, as one blacksmith’s daughter after another married another blacksmith.

There were originally no windows or ceiling, but the smithy was reconstructed in the mid-1800s. The chimney is also thought to date back to this reconstruction. Under the forge is a small oven which was used by the blacksmith’s wife and neighbouring women for baking bread.

The blacksmith was an important person in a village community and often acted in the capacity of both dentist and veterinarian