Minerals and Metals in Ancient India v1.c26.s6.t3.1

v1.c26.s6.t3.1

The retorts were found filled with somewhat less that 1 kg of spent charge most of which could be tipped out but some of which was fused to the walls, more towards the centre of the retorts than at the rear or front. The material was retrieved typically in the form of cindery pellets one cm³, most representative of the charge, and a fine dust fraction, which is essentially a mixture of the pellets and material that has spalled off the retort walls. This is evident from the analysis of the different components of the retort residue (Tables 18.2 and 18.3). The analysis of residue from different parts of the retort and also ash heap are provided in Table 18.4.