Minerals and Metals in Ancient India v2.c45.s6: Metals and Alloys in RRS

Minerals and Metals in Ancient India v2.c45.s6

Language: English

Metals and Alloys in RRS

v2.c45.s6.1

Rasaratnasamuccaya (RRS) provided a definition and classification for the metallic systems. The word metal or loha was defined as

v2.c45.s6.2

धातुलोहे लुह इति गतः स अपि कर्षार्थवाची dhāturlohe luha iti gataḥ sa api karṣārthavācī (RRS, 5.1)

derived from the root luha which means to be extracted. Four śuddha or pure lohas were named: suvarṇa, rajata, tāmra and loha (iron). Low melting-point metals such as nāga (lead) and vaṅga (tin) were known as pūtilohas. Pittala (brass), kāṃsya (bell-metal) and vartaloha (five metal alloy) were known as miśralohas or alloys. It is noted that by the time of RRS, iron came to be known as loha or lauha, and brass as pittala or pītala, derived from pīta tāla or yellow metal. Along with bell-metal, brass was known as a kṛtrima loha or miśra loha (10.66).

v2.c45.s6.4

Gold was categorised; it could be prākṛta (native), sahaja (natural), vahni-sambhūta (fire-produced), khani-sambhūta (from the mines) or rasendra-vedasanjāta (transmuted from a base metal). One method of purification was to heat gold leaf with salt and red ochre (5.2).

v2.c45.s6.5

Silver was described as ‘compact, clear, bright, heavy, white on cutting, soft, free from fissures, like śaṅkha (conch) in colour’ (5.26). Silver melted with lead and borax undergoes purification (5.34). The process is practically that of cupellation. Copper or tāmra used to come from Nepal (nepālaka) or some other foreign country (mlecchaka) (5.44). Nepālaka is soft, red and resistant to strong hammering.

v2.c45.s6.6

Vaṅga or tin was stated to be of two kinds: khuraka and miśraka. The former is endowed with superior qualities: White, soft, cool (to the touch), readily fusible and bright, and does not clink when bent or struck (5.154). Miśraka variety of tin is dirty white and was used after killing as an anthelmintic and a curative for urinary disorders (5.155).

v2.c45.s6.7

Nāga or sīsa has been described as

v2.c45.s6.8

द्रुतद्रावं महाभारं च्छेदे कृष्णमुज्ज्वलम्
पूतिगन्धं बहिः कृष्णं शुद्धम् सीसम् अतः अन्यथा।
drutadrāvaṃ mahābhāraṃ cchede kṛṣṇasamujvalam
pūtigandhaṃ bahiḥ kṛṣṇaṃ śuddham sīsam ataḥ anyathā ।
(5.171)

v2.c45.s6.9

Readily fusible, very heavy, presents a black and bright appearance on fracture, is of foetid odour and black exterior’.

v2.c45.s6.10

Apart from gold and copper, the three other metals which played important roles in the history of the ancient India were mercury, zinc and iron, and we would discuss their references in RRS later and separately. Now we would discuss some of the alloys mentioned in RRS.

v2.c45.s6.11

A composition of bronze known as kāṃsya or ghoṣa was described as

v2.c45.s6.12

अष्टभागेन ताम्रेण द्विभाग कुटिलेन च
विद्रुतेन भवेत् कांस्यम्।।
aṣṭabhāgena tāmreṇa dvibhāga kuṭilena ca
vidrutena bhavet kāṃsyam ।।
(5.205)

v2.c45.s6.13

Twenty per cent tin bronze is obtained by melting eight parts of copper with two parts of tin, ‘best done at Saurāṣṭra’.

v2.c45.s6.14

There was a process for recovering copper from ghoṣa or bell-metal

v2.c45.s6.15

स्वल्पतालयुक्तं कांस्यं वंकनालेन ताडितम्
मुक्तरंगं हि तत् ताम्रं घोषाकृष्टं उदाहृतम्
svalpatālayuktaṃ kāṃsyam vaṅkanālena tāḍitam
muktaraṅgaṃ hi tat tāmraṃ ghoṣākṛṣṭaṃ udāhṛtam
(8.37)

v2.c45.s6.16

When molten bell-metal is heated with a little tāla or orpiment and blown with a bent tube, it is freed of tin of raṅga, and what we get is ghoṣākṛṣṭa tāmra (copper extracted from bell metal).

v2.c45.s6.17

Copper-lead alloy made from mākṣika or pyrites was known as śulvanāga (8.18-19). Sixteen parts of silver and twelve parts of copper melted together was known as chandrārka (8.23).

v2.c45.s6.18

*Varanāga* was probably an iron-antimony alloy:

v2.c45.s6.19

तीक्ष्णं नीलांजनोपेतं ध्मातं हि बहुशो दृढम्।
मृत्कृष्णं द्रुद्रावं वरनागं तदुच्यते।।
*tikṣṇam nīlāñjanopetam dhmātam hi bahuśo dṛḍham*
*mṛdukṛṣṇam drutadrāvam varanāgam taducyate* ||

v2.c45.s6.20

*Varanāga*, a low melting alloy was made by melting cast iron or steel with *nilāñjana* or antimony sulphide. *Varaloha* was obtained by melting copper with cast iron or steel (8.12).

v2.c45.s6.21

*Vartaloha* has been described as:

v2.c45.s6.22

कांस्य अर्क रीति लोह अहिजातं तत् वर्तलोहकम्।
तदेव पंचलोहाख्यं लोहविद्भिः उदाहृतम्।।
*kāmsya arka rīti loha ahijātam tat vartalohakam* |
*tadeva pañcalohākhyam lohavidbhiḥ udāhṛtam* ||
(5.212)

v2.c45.s6.23

An alloy of five metallic systems (*pañcaloha*) of *kāmsya*, copper (*arka*), brass (*rīti*), iron and lead’.

v2.c45.s6.24

Fused mass of multi-metallic alloy, if grey or yellow, used to be called *piñjarī* (8.21).

Linked texts (1)

Rasaratnasamuccaya — Vāgbhaṭa (alchemist), Sanskrit