Iron in Ancient India c3: Introduction
Iron in Ancient India c3
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Introduction
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My object in preparing this series of monographs is to study the knowledge of the ancient Hindus of the different metals and their compounds from ancient Sanskrit literature, medical and non-medical, and also from analytical, archæological and mineralogical sources. Dr. P. C. Ray, in his well-known "History of Hindu Chemistry," has collected a large amount of medical or rather medico-chemical Sanskrit literature bearing on the knowledge of the Hindus of the metals and their compounds, but I would like to submit that there are other sources, specially non-medical Sanskritic and archæological literature, which would throw considerable light on the subject. It is my desire to bring together in a connected form the information on all these heads as far as practicable so that a more detailed history of Hindu Chemistry may be written afterwards.
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So far as the present monograph is concerned, it embodies in an enlarged form a lecture delivered on the 7th January, 1914, at the Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science, Dr. P. C. Ray presiding. I have attempted to discuss at considerable length the question whether iron was known in the Vedic Age, and I hope I have been able to prove that the use of iron was perfectly known to the first Aryan settlers in India. Such a discussion might throw some light on the vexed question of the prior use of iron and bronze, though so far as India is concerned there was no bronze age, as bronze weapons are scarcely to be found in India. As regards archæological evidence, ancient specimens of iron are so very abundant in India that an enumeration of these alone will convince any one that India has always been a rich iron-producing country. The great iron pillar at Delhi is well known to all, but I would like to draw prominent attention of all students of science to the other two less-known iron pillars, viz. the one at Dhar, which is nearly twice as big as the Delhi pillar, and the other on Mount Abu. Nor must we lose sight of the gigantic iron beams at Konarak, recently brought to full view from drift sea-sand in which many remained buried for two or three centuries, as well as of the numerous iron beams at Puri and Bhubaneswar where as many as 239 pieces have been counted in the Puri Gunduchibārī temple alone.
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I believe that the theory of forging small blooms of wrought iron into entire beams and pillars is the real solution of the question how these beams and pillars could have been forged with hand labour. As regards the solution of the problem how these pillars have so long withstood the rusting influence of wind and rain, my idea is that " low manganese with low sulphur and high phosphorus " in the composition of the iron has something to do with the " corrosion-resistance " capacity of wrought iron. I also suspect that the pillars and beams were originally painted.
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As regards the metallurgy of iron, wrought iron was produced in India by the *direct process*, i.e. directly from the ores in small blast furnaces without the intermediate production of cast iron, whilst the modern process may be called the *indirect process*, in which wrought iron is prepared from cast iron which is first formed in modern blast furnaces.
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I have devoted considerable space to the consideration of the manufacture of Indian steel which was certainly the material from which the famous Damascus blades were manufactured. It will be seen that the crucible process of making cast-steel by means of cementation was really an Indian invention, and that it was not till the nineteenth century that Mr. Mushet re-discovered the process in Europe.
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In conclusion, I should take this opportunity of thanking Dr. Spooner, Superintendent of the Archæological Department, Indian Museum, Calcutta, for his permission to take photographs of the Budh-Gaya iron clamps, and Dr. J. H. Marshal, Director of the Archæological Department, Government of India, for his permission to reproduce the plates from the Reports of the Archæological Survey of India. I am also indebted to the publishers of the *Empress* for their loan of the blocks of the Bijapur Guns for use in this paper. Mahamahopadhyay Dr. Satish Chandra Vidyabhushan, Principal of the Sanskrit College, Calcutta, placed every facility at my disposal, enabling me to study Vedic literature on the subject in the library of the College. I should also state that I was not aware of Sir Robert Hadfield's excellent papers on " Singhalese Iron and Steel of ancient Origin "
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in the Journal of the Iron and Steel Institute and Proceedings of the Royal Society, and that my attention was drawn to the papers at the meeting in which my paper was read. I have incorporated in this paper Sir Robert's analysis of Ceylon iron, as Ceylon was only a part of Greater India in ancient times.
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RAJSHAHI, 1914.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS.
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Page CHAPTER I. Iron in the Vedic Age .. .. .. .. 1 Iron in the Brahman Age .. .. .. .. 7
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CHAPTER II. Iron in the Epic Age .. .. .. .. 8
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CHAPTER III. Ancient specimens of iron in India. Prehistoric iron implements discovered in Tinnevelly .. .. .. 12 Iron from the Piprāhwā Stupa .. .. .. 13 Iron in the Buddhist Temple at Bodh-Gaya .. .. 14 Iron pillar at Delhi .. .. .. .. 15 Iron beams in the temples at Bhubaneswar, Puri and Konarak in Orissa .. .. .. .. 21 Iron pillar at Dhar .. .. .. .. 27 Iron pillar on Mount Abu .. .. .. .. 30 Iron in the gates of Somnath .. .. .. 31 Iron guns and cannon .. .. .. .. 32
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CHAPTER IV. Matters of chemical interest relating to Indian iron. Analysis of Indian iron .. .. .. .. 41 Tensile strength of Indian iron .. .. .. 42 Micrographic examination of ancient Ceylon iron .. 43 Varieties of Indian iron .. .. .. .. 44 Theory of forging iron beams and pillars .. .. 47 Explanation of "corrosion resistance" power of Indian iron.
(a) Low manganese with low sulphur and high phosphorus .. .. .. .. .. 49
(b) Application of paints on iron beams and pillars .. 51 Compounds of iron.
(a) Oxides of iron .. .. .. .. .. 53
(b) Sulphides of iron .. .. .. .. 58
(c) Chlorides of iron .. .. .. .. 58
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CHAPTER V.
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Metallurgy of Indian iron ores and mines of iron in ancient India . . . . . 59 Direct process of manufacturing wrought-iron .. .. 60 Why wrought-iron and not cast-iron is produced by the Indian process .. .. .. .. .. 64
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CHAPTER VI.
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Indian steel or wootz. Derivation of " wootz " .. .. .. .. .. 65 Historical . . . . . 65 Manufacture of wootz. Crucible process of making cast-steel by cementation .. .. .. .. .. 69 Crucible process of making cast-steel—an Indian discovery 74
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CHAPTER VII.
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Cast-iron . . . . . 77
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By P. Neogi.