Anvils, Again

I was checking notes on Papius’ controlmarks (RRC 384/1). A mindless task of a sort. I’ve looked at them many times; there should be no surprises.

No. 4 obverse [click for more images of the same]

So my first concern was that bump on the top. On some specimens it looks more like a shallow dome. Anvils are known in numismatic art, as well as lots of other art media:

There is even a really convincing Anvil on the Fabatus control mark series (RRC 412/1 Obverse 4). I have post full of images of anvils. And I even went to Arachne to be sure I’d not missed any thing relevant. I found more images confirming the same but no significant variation. An Anvil is typically rectilinear. It often has little feet. The top surface is often slightly larger than the bottom. I see none with a top and bottom edge and central shaft like in the controlmark above. And none with a rounded top.

For a hot minute I contemplated if the thing on top could be a shield because of this relief, but then dismissed the idea.

This is frustrating as anvil was such a clean and tidy ID, but I no longer believe it. Altar or Puteal would seem more likely but why the tongs and why the domed top?

I wonder if it could be the fire for heating the metal prior to striking. These often look like altars with a clam shell backing to keep the heat in.

I’m not at all convinced. So I went looking for objects found with Tongs. Not much. Bah. I will leave it for now.

The altar in the relief below has some little steps on it.

The medical tongs look quite different here.