Post by zarahan on Aug 20, 2013 12:30:53 GMT -5
EXCERPT
They were produced more than 5,000 years ago, 2,000 years before the emergence of iron smelting, suggesting that the metalworking techniques which went on to define the iron age had their origins as early as the fourth millennium BC.
When iron smelting began in the second millennium BC, smiths would already have gained nearly 2,000 years of experience from working with meteoric iron and this would have been key to the development of the technology which allowed iron to replace copper and bronze in early metal working, Prof Rehren explained.
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www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/10252529/Ancient-Egyptians-made-jewellery-from-meteorites.html
Ancient Egyptians made jewellery from meteorites
Ancient Egyptian jewellery once thought to be made from iron ore was actually hammered into shape from fragments of meteorites, according to a new study.
By Nick Collins, Science Correspondent
20 Aug 2013
The space rocks, kept at the UCL Petrie museum, were beaten into flat sheets and rolled into nine tubes, before being strung together as a necklace alongside gold and gemstones, researchers found.
They were produced more than 5,000 years ago, 2,000 years before the emergence of iron smelting, suggesting that the metalworking techniques which went on to define the iron age had their origins as early as the fourth millennium BC.
Prof Thilo Rehren, an archaeologist from University College London, lead author of the study in the Journal of Archaeological Science, explained: “The shape of the beads was obtained by smithing and rolling, most likely involving multiple cycles of hammering, and not by the traditional stone-working techniques such as carving or drilling which were used for the other beads found in the same tomb.”
The findings demonstrate that when the beads were made in the fourth millennium BC, metalworkers were already adept at smithing meteoric iron, which is a harder and more brittle alloy than copper.
When iron smelting began in the second millennium BC, smiths would already have gained nearly 2,000 years of experience from working with meteoric iron and this would have been key to the development of the technology which allowed iron to replace copper and bronze in early metal working, Prof Rehren explained.
The beads were excavated in 1911 in a cemetery near the village of el-Gerzeh in Lower Egypt, and had been extremely corroded when they were found.
Researchers used x-ray techniques to determine that they were meteoric iron and not magnetite, which has similar properties to corroded iron.
The scans revealed the texture of the beads, and showed that they contained high concentrations of nickel, cobalt, phosphorous and germanium, which is common in meteoric iron but only in very small amounts in iron ore.
“The really exciting outcome of this research is that we were for the first time able to demonstrate conclusively that there are typical trace elements such as cobalt and germanium present in these beads, at levels that only occur in meteoritic iron," Prof Rehren said.
“We are also excited to be able to see the internal structure of the beads, revealing how they were rolled and hammered into form. This is very different technology from the usual stone bead drilling, and shows quite an advanced understanding of how the metal smiths worked this rather difficult material.”
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They were produced more than 5,000 years ago, 2,000 years before the emergence of iron smelting, suggesting that the metalworking techniques which went on to define the iron age had their origins as early as the fourth millennium BC.
When iron smelting began in the second millennium BC, smiths would already have gained nearly 2,000 years of experience from working with meteoric iron and this would have been key to the development of the technology which allowed iron to replace copper and bronze in early metal working, Prof Rehren explained.
-----------------------------------------
www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/10252529/Ancient-Egyptians-made-jewellery-from-meteorites.html
Ancient Egyptians made jewellery from meteorites
Ancient Egyptian jewellery once thought to be made from iron ore was actually hammered into shape from fragments of meteorites, according to a new study.
By Nick Collins, Science Correspondent
20 Aug 2013
The space rocks, kept at the UCL Petrie museum, were beaten into flat sheets and rolled into nine tubes, before being strung together as a necklace alongside gold and gemstones, researchers found.
They were produced more than 5,000 years ago, 2,000 years before the emergence of iron smelting, suggesting that the metalworking techniques which went on to define the iron age had their origins as early as the fourth millennium BC.
Prof Thilo Rehren, an archaeologist from University College London, lead author of the study in the Journal of Archaeological Science, explained: “The shape of the beads was obtained by smithing and rolling, most likely involving multiple cycles of hammering, and not by the traditional stone-working techniques such as carving or drilling which were used for the other beads found in the same tomb.”
The findings demonstrate that when the beads were made in the fourth millennium BC, metalworkers were already adept at smithing meteoric iron, which is a harder and more brittle alloy than copper.
When iron smelting began in the second millennium BC, smiths would already have gained nearly 2,000 years of experience from working with meteoric iron and this would have been key to the development of the technology which allowed iron to replace copper and bronze in early metal working, Prof Rehren explained.
The beads were excavated in 1911 in a cemetery near the village of el-Gerzeh in Lower Egypt, and had been extremely corroded when they were found.
Researchers used x-ray techniques to determine that they were meteoric iron and not magnetite, which has similar properties to corroded iron.
The scans revealed the texture of the beads, and showed that they contained high concentrations of nickel, cobalt, phosphorous and germanium, which is common in meteoric iron but only in very small amounts in iron ore.
“The really exciting outcome of this research is that we were for the first time able to demonstrate conclusively that there are typical trace elements such as cobalt and germanium present in these beads, at levels that only occur in meteoritic iron," Prof Rehren said.
“We are also excited to be able to see the internal structure of the beads, revealing how they were rolled and hammered into form. This is very different technology from the usual stone bead drilling, and shows quite an advanced understanding of how the metal smiths worked this rather difficult material.”
SNIP>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> END EXERCEPT