Metals and Civilizations
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METALS AND CIVILIZATIONS METALS METALS AND CIVILIZATIONS National Institute of Advanced Studies Eds.: Sharada Srinivasan, Srinivasa RanganathanGiumlia-Mair Sharada and Alessandra Eds.: Proceedings of the VII International Conference on ‘The Beginnings of the Use of Metals and Alloys’ Editors: BUMA-VII Sharada Srinivasan Srinivasa Ranganathan Alessandra Giumlia-Mair About this Book The proceedings of BUMA VII, held in 2009 in Bangalore as part of the renowned international conference series on the ‘Beginnings of the Use of Metals and Alloys’, are published as an edited volume entitled “Metals and Civilisations”. With twenty eight valuable peer-reviewed papers covering inter-disciplinary research, it widens our knowledge of the use of metals in antiquity and several aspects of the archaeology, archaeometallurgy, historical metallurgy, crafts practices and metallurgical heritage of many Asian and some non-Asian countries About the Editors Prof. Sharada Prof. Srinivasa Dr. Alessandra Srinivasan Ranganathan Giumlia-Mair Prof. Sharada Srinivasan is Professor Prof. Srinivasa Ranganathan is Dr. Phil., M.Sc. Alessandra Giumlia- at the National Institute of Advanced Emeritus Professor at the Indian Mair was first lecturer and then Studies and anchor of the NIAS Institute of Science and Homi Professor by contract (1992- Heritage, Science and Society Bhabha Visiting Professor at the 2001) in Archaeometallurgy and programme and works in the areas of National Institute of Advanced Archaeometry at the Universities archaeometallurgy, archaeomaterials, Studies. His interests cover physical Salzburg (Austria), Trieste and archaeological sciences, art-science metallurgy, history of science and Udine (Italy). In 2000 she founded interface and performing arts. She is heritage science. He is a member of AGM Archeoanalisi, a laboratory a recipient of the Dr. Kalpana Chawla International Advisory Committee of specialising in Archaeometallurgy. Young Woman Scientist Award the BUMA Conference series, INSA She worked on European and Asian (2011), the Indian Institute of Metals National Commission for the History finds from excavations and from the Certificate of Excellence (2007) of Science and the DST Programme British Museum, Ägyptische- and and Materials Research Society of Advisory Committee on Indian Antiken Sammlung Munich, Royal India Medal (2006) and the Malti Digital Heritage – Hampi. He taught Ontario Museum Toronto, Römisch- B. Nagar Ethnoarchaeology Award the inaugural course on Science Germanisches Museum Cologne, (2005). She is a Fellow of the Royal and Civilization in India to IISc National Museum of Transylvania, Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Undergraduates in August 2011 and National Museum Budapest, National Ireland and the World Academy of a course on Materials Heritage and Museum Cyprus, Institute of Aegaean Art and Science. She did her PhD in Conservation at the Tokyo University Studies Crete, and many museums Archaeometallurgy from Institute of of the Arts, Japan in 2012. He is a in Italy. She is Member of the BUMA Archaeology, UCL, London. She has Fellow of four Indian Academies Standing Committee, Fellow of coauthored with Prof S. Ranganathan of Science and Engineering and seven European Academic Societies, a book on ‘India’s Legendary Wootz the World Academy of Sciences published around 200 books and Steel’ (Universities Press, 2014). (TWAS) and recipient of Lifetime papers on Archaeometallurgy, and Achievement Awards from the Indian edited 12 volumes of Proceedings of National Academy of Engineering International Conferences on Ancient (2014) and Indian Institute of Metals Metallurgy and Archaeometry. (2012). Metals and Civilizations Proceedings of the Seventh International Conference on the Beginnings of the Use of Metals and Alloys (BUMA VII) Editors: Sharada Srinivasan Srinivasa Ranganathan and Alessandra Giumlia-Mair Published by National Institute of Advanced Studies, Bangalore © National Institute of Advanced Studies 2015 Published by National Institute of Advanced Studies Indian Institute of Science Campus Bangalore 560 012 Tel:080-22185000, Fax: 080-22185028 Email: [email protected] NIAS Book: SP7-2015 ISBN No. 978-93-83566-11-2 All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage and retrieval system without permission in writing from the publishers. Typeset and Printed by Aditi Enterprises Bangalore 560 023 Ph: 080-23107302 Email: [email protected] Cover Images NIAS EMBLEM The NIAS logo is derived from descriptions related to the building of Vedic fire altars in the remarkable Sanskrit work of the Sulva-sutras. Displaying a deep knowledge of geometry, the text is thought to date from pre-Euclidean times, circa 6th c. BCE predating Panini. The NIAS emblem relates to an arrangement of bricks comprising the first layer of an altar called `śyēna-cita’. The altar is shaped like of an eagle or falcon, following descriptions in the eleventh chapter of the Baudayana text. The śyēna-cita was thought to be an apt symbol for National Institute of Advanced Studies, evoking a keen mathematical and engineering sensibility and artistic imagination. It had been designed by the renowned sculptor Sri Balan Nambiar under the initiative of the former Director of NIAS, Prof Roddam Narasimha. DELHI IRON PILLAR The Iron Pillar in Delhi, one of the best known of Indian historic landmarks, towers at about 7 m. This earliest known massive wrought iron forgingt has resisted corrosion for over 1600 years. The inscription in Gupta Brahmi of about 400 CE suggests that it was a victory monument of the Hindu Gupta king Chandragupta Vikramaditya II. It seems to have been moved to its present location within the spectacular Qutb Minar complex under the Muslim Sultanate king of Delhi, Iltutmish in the 1300’s. Robert Hadfield made pioneering scientific observations in 1912 on the iron pillar. Current understanding suggests that the higher traces of phosphorus in the iron contributed to its corrosion resistance, earning it the nickname the ‘Rustless Wonder’ Seminal contributions to several facets of the history and metallurgy of the pillar have been made by R Balasubramaniam. The pillar is among the 50 moments in materials compiled by TMS, USA. In 2013 ASM recognized it as a Historical Landmark. THE CERN NATARAJA The bronze image of the dancing Hindu God Siva as Nataraja, often described as ‘the Lord of the Cosmic Dance’, has been worshipped at the temple of Chidambaram since the medieval Chola times. In 2004, a two metre statue of the Nataraja was gifted to CERN the European Center for Research in Particle Physics in Geneva, by the Indian Government to celebrate the research center’s long association with India. This impressive casting was made by master craftsman Rajan from Tamil Nadu supported by IGCAR Kalpakkam then headed by Dr. Baldev Raj, currently Director NIAS. The statue has been installed with plaques with the evocative writings of celebrated art historian Ananda Coomaraswamy and quantum physicist Fritjof Capra. The weaving together of art and science is captured in Fritjof Capra’s poetic words that ‘the metaphor of the cosmic dance unifies ancient mythology, religious art and modern physics’. Contents Foreword by Director NIAS ix Foreword by Robert Maddin (Founding Chairman, BUMA) xi Foreword by Thilo Rehren and Jianjun Mei (BUMA Chairpersons) xiii Preface by Sharada Srinivasan, Srinivasa Ranganathan and Alessandra Giumlia-Mair xvii Acknowledgements by Sharada Srinivasan and Srinivasa Ranganathan xix Organising Committees xx Supporting Organisations xxi I Metallurgy and Interactions across the Ancient World 1. Ian Glover 3 The Bronze Age to Iron Age transition in Southeast Asia – a comparative perspective 2. Katheryn M. Linduff 14 What’s mine is yours: the transmission of metallurgical technology in Eastern Eurasia and East Asia 3. Alessandra Giumlia-Mair and Béla Kürti 23 Hunnic gold in Hungary and the Hunnic-Asian connections 4. Thomas Oliver Pryce, Mercedes Murillo-Barroso, Berenice Bellina and Marcos Martinon-Torres 33 Khao Sam Kaeo – an archaeometallurgical crossroads for Trans-Asiatic technological traditions 5. Constantin Canavas 47 Early use of iron in Aksum: trade and technology transfer across the Ethiopian highland II Iron Technology 6. Eiji Izawa 55 Iron lumps formed from the ancient copper smelting: an example from Naganobori, Japan 7. Kazuhiro Nagata 62 Mass and heat balance of pig iron making by Tatara v BUMA VII – METALS AND CIVILIZATIONS 8. Anna Bennett 68 Manufacture, use and trade of late prehistoric iron billhooks from mainland Southeast Asia 9. Gill Juleff 78 Crucible steel at Hattota Amune, Sri Lanka, in the first millennium AD: archaeology and contextualisation 10. Quansheng Huang and Yanxiang Li 87 A new discovery: manganese as a flux agent at the Song Dynasty [960 -1279 A.D.] iron smelting sites in Xingye County, Guangxi, China 11. Vibha Tripathi 95 Metallurgical innovations and pattern of adaptation of iron in early cultures of India 12. Ashok Kumar Vaish and Shiwa Dhar Singh 103 Improvements in traditional Indian iron making technology 13. Ramamurthy Balasubramaniam†, Sharada Srinivasan and Srinivasa Ranganathan 112 Ancient Indian iron and steel and modern scientific insights III Copper Technology 14. Xiaocen Li, Yali Yun and Rubin Han 123 Scientific examination of metal objects from the third excavation of Haimenkou