Mending a mower in Sorbie

  Blacksmiths mending a mower, Sorbie. Dr Werner Kissling, 1958. These two blacksmiths from Sorbie were brothers. In this photograph they are crouching down, repairing a farmer's mower. As demand for traditional skills lessened, blacksmiths used their skills for a range of new jobs.   Although the introduction of tractors reduced the work required of blacksmiths, this tractor-driven mower required their skills to repair it.   Dr Werner Kissling (1895-1988) was a German photographer and ethnographer who spent most of his life documenting Scottish crafts, architecture, and agricultural practices. He was associated with Dumfries Museum from the mid-1950s until his death in 1988.