strange new anvil i've just bought

[boilermaker]

g'day all, i was just wondering if anyone knows what this new anvil i've just bought was design'd for? i paid far to much for it but thought it would be a great little portable. it weighs in the vacinity of 40# and was made in the U.K the seller advertised it as cast steel, but by the looks of the square hole in the waist my guess is it's probably wrought? it's a robert renton by the way.

also bought a 171 # hay budden the other day in near mint condition, so it's been a bit of an anvil buying spree latley

 

[Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith]

I am not the expert on anvils, but what I always called those was "STUBBY ANVILS". They are small anvils for machine and metal shops that drop into a square hole in an anvil base or a larger flat anvil ( The kind used by iron workers for bending and fabrication. My flat anvil has a square hole in it which I was told was for such an anvil. The same base could be used for a variety of post anvils,too.
The small square anvil plate is the cutting plate. That would make a very nice knife making anvil. The Japanese use a similar shape, but without the bick.
Stacy