Anchors are fabricated from a number of materials; the earliest ones being made from large stone blocks, sacks of sand, wooden logs or from mesh baskets filled with an assortment of stones.
Once the industrial revolution came along, blast furnaces produced the pig- iron from which cast iron anchors were made. Following the development of carbon steel, this was used to fabricate steel anchors through drop forging.
Stainless steel, brass and bronze alloy LWT (Lightweight) anchors are normally used by yachts, pleasure craft, and small fishing boats; the heavy cast iron and forged type being used on deep-sea ships.
There can be two bow anchors known as bower anchors and a stern anchor, the later doubling up as a means of getting off a sandbank, lee shore, or shallow water rocky prominence.
