Iron in Ancient India c5.11

c5.11

estimation was Indian steel held in Europe. Chānakya or Kautilya, the Indian Maichaveli and the well-known prime minister of Chandra Gupta, has in his well-known 'Treatise on Polity' (Artha-shāstra) left a magnificent account of the political, industrial, social and military organization of the fourth century B.C. In it we not only find the description of various implements of warfare such as iron swords, arrows, shatagni (killer of hundreds), axes, spades, etc., besides iron breast-plates and armour, but also the description of the functions of an important state functionary called 'ākarādhwakhya' or 'superintendent of mines.' I have not come across this word in any other old Sanskrit writing, and the duties of this official show that there was formerly a regular government department responsible for mining work. The superintendent of mines should make trial borings "with the help of trained men who are versed in the knowledge about metals and distillation of mercury. He should be an adept in the examination of precious metals. He should be provided with necessary apparatus and make borings in those places where the presence of slag, charcoal and ashes indicates previous smelting operations or in those places, either in the plains or at the foot of mountains, where the colour or smell of soil and ores would suggest the existence of metals."¹ Chānakya also gives descriptions of ores and mines of gold, silver, copper, iron, lead, tin and precious stones and mentions that the ores of iron should have a colour of the orange, faint red or red like vermillion.² The ores evidently refer to brown and red hæmatites (gairik) which are found abundantly in India.