Invention of cast iron smelting in early China: Archaeological survey and numerical simulation

Qian, Wei; Huang, Xing

doi:10.1016/j.aia.2021.04.001

Cited by 9 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 4 publications

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“…This may indicate that the greatest heat accumulated here, which would corroborate that the tunnels were used as air ducts. In simulations of heat distribution in later shaft furnaces for cast iron, the greatest heat accumulated opposite of the air duct which supports this hypothesis (Qian and Huang 2021). Another function of these tunnels, as they led from the pit downward to the bottom of the furnace, was potentially to tap and remove the slag into the working pit, as larger amounts of slag fragments are found in the tunnel and in the working pit connected to the tunnel when a slag block was not found in situ in the lower part of the furnace.…”

Section: Excavated Furnacessupporting

confidence: 60%

“…Since the earliest iron artifacts are known from Xinjiang (Wagner 2008, 91-93), it was suggested that bloomery iron technology was transmitted to China from the northwest, the Fergana Valley, or the Eurasian Steppe (Wagner 2008, 97;Qian and Huang 2021, 4). However, from the Warring States period (457-221 BCE), blast furnaces were used in China to produce cast iron, whereas the bloomery smelting process did not catch on (Wagner 2008, 105-7;Qian and Huang 2021).…”

Section: Before the Xiongnu: Iron Smelting Furnaces In Eastern Eurasiamentioning

confidence: 99%

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The innovation of iron and the Xiongnu – a case study from Central Mongolia

et al. 2023

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This article presents the oldest iron smelting furnaces of the Xiongnu Empire period in central Mongolia and argues that a significant smelting center existed at the site of Baga Nariĭn Am. Five iron smelting furnaces and four smelting installations were excavated, with a total 26 furnaces further identified through SQUID magnetometry. In combination with a review of data on iron production in contemporary Mongolia, the Transbaikal region, Tuva, the Minusinsk Basin and the Altai, we argue that this new data alters existing narratives of the adoption of iron in eastern Eurasia. While iron smelting as such was adopted from the Minusinsk Basin, where the oldest iron smelting furnaces in eastern Eurasia are currently found, we suggest that the driving force behind the massive boom in iron metallurgy from the second century BCE onward was the Xiongnu Empire. During the course of the Xiongnu Empire, the development of more efficient iron technology is evident, with the steppe empire also inventing a new furnace type. These findings are significant for understanding the dynamics of iron industries in the eastern Eurasian Steppe and paves the way for necessary work on metallurgical installations in the Minusinsk Basin and Tuva.

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Section: Excavated Furnacessupporting

confidence: 60%

Section: Before the Xiongnu: Iron Smelting Furnaces In Eastern Eurasiamentioning

confidence: 99%

The innovation of iron and the Xiongnu – a case study from Central Mongolia

et al. 2023

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“…This early appearance of cast iron has obvious implications for the subsequent recycling of (broken up) earlier cast‐iron artefacts in the production of new cast‐iron metal. From archaeological evidence, Qian and Huang (2021) claim the earliest cast‐iron production in China to have occurred during the Zhou dynasty, c .800 BCE , and they also claim the earlier presence of bloomery iron in western China (Xinjiang and Gansu provinces) from as early as the 14th century BCE onwards (during the Shang dynasty of central China). If this is correct, it suggests that bloomery iron in China might be approximately contemporaneous with its presence in Europe.…”

Section: Iron Production and The Forms Of Iron Recyclingmentioning

confidence: 99%

‘The sword that was broken …’: The detection of recycled iron in the archaeological record

2023

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Although the recycling of materials such as copper and glass is widely known and generally well understood within archaeological contexts, far less is known about the recycling of iron. Iron recycling is more complex than that of other metals for two reasons. First, normal manufacturing processes, which include forging several components to make a composite object, offer the opportunity to include recycled iron. Second, the material itself is more complex than Cu alloys. The alloys of Fe, depending primarily on C content, are very different in terms of properties and can be interconverted by (normally) removing C such as decarburizing cast iron to make wrought iron. Thus, recycling practices are potentially intimately combined with such processes. These factors, combined with the poor preservation of archaeological iron and the consequent reluctance to carry out extensive studies (which often require destructive analysis via metallography), mean that there are no clear criteria for identifying recycled iron. However, limited historical documentation suggests, at least indirectly, that such recycling was common. This paper is neither comprehensive nor definitive, but merely intends to promote discussion and awareness of iron recycling by hypothesizing several possible mechanisms and providing a few illustrative archaeological examples.

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“…The oldest metal smelting sites were found in China within a range from 475 BC to 1644 AD. Thus, the mastery of metal technology from the procurement of metal ore (mining) had started at that time [6].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Iron Civilization of Matano Lake, South Sulawesi: Paleometallic to Historical Periods

Triwurjani¹,

Adhityatama²,

SURYATMAN³

et al. 2023

Advances in Social Science, Education and Humanities Research

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Artifacts of funnel axes, which characterize the paleometallic period, were found in Lake Matano. The discovery of several weapons in the form of kris, machetes, knives, daggers (badik) shows that the Matano area is a metalproducing area. In the Nagarakrtagama Manuscript, it is stated that the Majapahit Kingdom imported metal from Matano to make weapons. However, not much archaeological evidence has been found to know the pattern of development of ancient metal processing activities. This study aims to obtain information about the early development of iron age culture in the Lake Matano Region and innovations in the field of archeometallurgy that our ancestors once possessed. Through land and underwater explorations, it is known that there are traces of iron processing. The results of dating analysis show that metal processing in the Lake Matano area was carried out continuously from the 8th to the 18th centuries AD.

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Invention of cast iron smelting in early China: Archaeological survey and numerical simulation

Cited by 9 publications

References 4 publications

The innovation of iron and the Xiongnu – a case study from Central Mongolia

The innovation of iron and the Xiongnu – a case study from Central Mongolia

‘The sword that was broken …’: The detection of recycled iron in the archaeological record

The Iron Civilization of Matano Lake, South Sulawesi: Paleometallic to Historical Periods

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