Minerals and Metals in Ancient India v1.c19.s5.t5.3

v1.c19.s5.t5.3

Hegde (1987) has suggested that glass in India was an innovation of the PGW period, and *sajjī maṭṭi*, also called *reh*, *khari*, was used for making the early variety of soft glass. *Sajjī maṭṭi* is an alkaline, natural efflorescence, profusely found in the Ganga Valley, chiefly in mid-eastern and eastern Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. During the summer months, it comes out as a superficial incrustation on the alluvial soil as a 2-3 cm thick layer of glistening, white, crystalline salt, shining brightly in sunlight. It assays 20-40 per cent soda, variable proportions of Na₂CO₃ and Na₂SO₄, 5-10 per cent lime and 50-70 per cent silica; its use with some raw material containing Fe and Cr in making the dark green soft glass, as mentioned in the previous paragraph, can be easily surmised. *Sajjī maṭṭi* was also used in providing the liquid glaze on the later day NBP wares.