Minerals and Metals in Ancient India v1.c14.s2.t4: Copper Ingot
Minerals and Metals in Ancient India v1.c14.s2.t4
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Copper Ingot
v1.c14.s2.t4.1
Copper ingots were found at Lothal. The bun-shaped ingot contains 99.81 per cent copper and no tin or any other alloy. The ingot of Mohenjo-Daro and that of Lothal closely resembled. These were plano-convex in shape. All these were found in a house which is considered to be the quarter or workshop of a metal-worker. The concave under-surface of the ingots suggests that the pit in which they were run had a convex floor. The ingots from Susa also have a concave under-surface and short projections. Some scholars think that Lothal and Mohenjo-Daro imported copper ingots. This crude metal was normally remelted for refining in clay crucibles, which were then broken up for the recovery of the purified metal. (Rao, 520-21)
v1.c14.s2.t4.2
The analysis of the ingot shows that it is made of copper of a high degree of purity, i.e., 99.81 per cent and is free from tin, lead, zinc and arsenic but contains only traces of iron and nickel as impurities. (Rao, 653)