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Iron, called as Ayas (Samskrit: अयस्) heralded a new era in the history of mankind. Iron technology has a special place among the ancient technologies that accelerated the pace of progress and brought prosperity in society. In human history Iron Age succeeded Copper-Bronze Age as iron required a different kind of skill and a higher level of metallurgical expertise. The craftsmen who were adept in working with copper and its alloys and other glittering metals like gold, silver etc., that could be used in their native form at a much lower temperature could not smelt iron with the same technique. India has rich iron ore deposit. The ore is not only widely distributed but also easily accessible in the form of nodules scattered on the earth's surface. This must have facilitated easy hand picking of rich ore nodules by the early or primitive metal workers. However, wide distribution and easy access to the ore were insufficient to produce metallic iron and required skilled metal workers possessing sufficient metallurgical know-how. Archeological researches and archival accounts including foreign records by travelers or historians of ancient India bear that Indian iron and steel had gained significant recognition in the ancient world.<ref name=":0">Vibha Tripathi,  ''Aspects of Iron Technology in India'' in Propagation, vol 3-1, 2012</ref> India abounded with vast deposits of many minerals and precious stones, thus [[Mineralogy (धातुशास्त्रम्)|mineralogy]] was an important topic dealt with even in texts such as Rigveda that helped develop and sustain many metal and alloy industries.   

Iron, called as Ayas (Samskrit: अयस्) heralded a new era in the history of mankind. Iron technology has a special place among the ancient technologies that accelerated the pace of progress and brought prosperity in society. In human history Iron Age succeeded Copper-Bronze Age as iron required a different kind of skill and a higher level of metallurgical expertise. The craftsmen who were adept in working with copper and its alloys and other glittering metals like gold, silver etc., that could be used in their native form at a much lower temperature could not smelt iron with the same technique. India has rich iron ore deposit. The ore is not only widely distributed but also easily accessible in the form of nodules scattered on the earth's surface. This must have facilitated easy hand picking of rich ore nodules by the early or primitive metal workers. However, wide distribution and easy access to the ore were insufficient to produce metallic iron and required skilled metal workers possessing sufficient metallurgical know-how. Archeological researches and archival accounts including foreign records by travelers or historians of ancient India bear that Indian iron and steel had gained significant recognition in the ancient world.<ref name=":0">Vibha Tripathi,  ''Aspects of Iron Technology in India'' in Propagation, vol 3-1, 2012</ref> India abounded with vast deposits of many minerals and precious stones, thus [[Mineralogy (धातुशास्त्रम्)|mineralogy]] was an important topic dealt with even in texts such as Rigveda that helped develop and sustain many metal and alloy industries.   

== Wootz Steel ==

== Wootz Steel ==

Wootz is the anglicized version of 'ukku' in the language of the states of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, a term denoting steel. Ample literary references suggest that the steel from southern India was the finest and once exported to Europe, China, Arab countries and the Middle East.<ref>Srinivasan. S and Ranganathan. S. ''Wootz steel: An advanced material of the ancient world'' in Iron & Steel Heritage of India Ed. S. Ranganathan, ATM 97, Jamshedpur</ref>

Wootz is the anglicized version of 'ukku' in the language of the states of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, a term denoting steel. Ample literary references suggest that the steel from southern India was the finest and once exported to Europe, China, Arab countries and the Middle East. Though an ancient material, it fulfills the description of advanced material. It is an ultra-high carbon steel of 1-2% exhibiting properties such as super-plasticity and high impact hardness.<ref name=":7">Srinivasan. S and Ranganathan. S. ''Wootz steel: An advanced material of the ancient world'' in Iron & Steel Heritage of India Ed. S. Ranganathan, ATM 97, Jamshedpur</ref>

 

 

Although iron and steel had been used for thousands of years, the role of carbon in steel as the dominant element was found only in 1774 by the Swedish chemist, Tobern Bergman, and was due to the efforts of Europeans to unravel the mysteries of wootz. With the aim of reproducing the South Indian wootz steel on an industrial scale, there was a spurt in interest in many European travellers in early 1800's. By 1918 Belaiew made an important finding concerning wootz steel; he was probably the first to attribute the malleability of it to the spheroidized nature of the forged steel and to recognize that this occurs during forging at a temperature of red heat (700-800^oC).<ref name=":7" />

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== References ==

== References ==

[[Category:Shastras]]

[[Category:Shastras]]