History of Technology in India, Vol. I: From Antiquity to c. 1200 A.D. v1.c13.s4.1

v1.c13.s4.1

According to Tylecote (1976) the beginning of the craft of cold working of metals might have begun with the discovery of native Gold or Copper and discovery of their deformation when hammered. The lithic people might have hammered these nuggests with stone to break away chips having sharp edge, as in the case of stone tools, and to their surprise they might have discovered that these nuggets could be deformed by hammering. This might have lead to the manufacture of some simple tools and weapons by cold working, and sharpening of the edges by grinding on stoneslab.