Hand-Forged Three-Tine Hand Cultivator – Master Shin’s Anvil

Three-Tine Hand Cultivator by Master Shin’s Anvil: Three forged claws rake through a bed, loosen crusted soil and drag out grass in a few strokes.

Forged by hand in Anseong, South Korea, and shipped new from our US stock partner.

The Design Story

Nothing about this hand cultivator is styled; it is shaped. Master Shin In-Young apprenticed at 13, became a master at 17 and works in the Anseong forge founded in 1845, known as South Korea’s oldest; his ironwork has gone into restoring Seoul’s Sungnyemun gate. The workshop has used recycled railroad rail for over a century and quenches with water only. The steel band where blade meets wood, the daenggi, is shaped as an ornament in its own right.

Why You’ll Love It

The forge marks stay on the steel and the pale wood handle carries nothing but the workshop’s burned-in X, so it looks exactly like what it is. It is made to be used hard, in real soil, for decades. And every year of use adds to the patina.

Made for Real Life

Knock the soil off, dry it, wipe on a little oil and hang it in a dry shed. Carbon steel weathers to a dark patina; it only rusts if it is left wet.

Product Details

A head of roughly 8.3 cm (3.25 in) across on a tool about 25 cm (9.8 in) long; being hand-forged, no two are exactly alike.

Where It Shines

In a potting shed, hanging from a hook by the back door, or in a canvas tool roll for the allotment. Pair it with: garden trowel, garden hand fork, winged garden hoe, wide-blade sickle.

Questions We Hear Most

Who forges the Master Shin Hand Cultivator (#70)?

Master Shin In-Young, in his workshop in Anseong, South Korea. The workshop, founded in 1845, is known as the country’s oldest blacksmith shop, and in 2016 Master Shin was designated Gyeonggi Province Intangible Cultural Heritage No. 60.

What size is the Master Shin Hand Cultivator (#70)?

11.5 in overall; head 2.5 × 3.25 in.

Can the Master Shin Hand Cultivator (#70) stay outside?

Better not: store it dry in a shed or garage. Left out in the rain, carbon steel rusts; dried and oiled, it weathers to a dark patina.

Does the Master Shin Hand Cultivator (#70) need special treatment?

Just dry it after use and give it a wipe of oil now and then.

Is the Master Shin Hand Cultivator (#70) a good gift?

For a gardener, yes: a hand-forged tool with a story, and one that gets better looking the more it is used.

How quickly does the Master Shin Hand Cultivator (#70) go out?

Usually within 2–3 business days of your order.

Why We Love It

In a world of stamped stainless steel, this is one person’s work, made the way it has been made in Anseong for generations.

For the Trade

Equipping a garden studio or choosing gifts for clients? Members of the LoftModern Trade Program (interior designers, architects, contractors, builders, home stagers and commercial buyers) receive trade pricing, up to 20% off retail on eligible brands, plus round-the-clock concierge support for stock checks and lead times. Apply once with your business details; we reply by email with your account.

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