Ethno-Archaeometallurgy of Iron in India

Ethnoarchaeology (living archaeology) is an advance and fast growing multidisciplinary subject in which observation has been made by archaeologist on alive primitive societies which can lead to better understanding the past. It has two components of context: the first one is the context of the past and the second one is the context of the present which is based on ethnic society which must be pre-literate, non-urbanised and pre-industrial. Considering the golorious past of rich material culture of India, it has to be admitted that very little work has been done to unfold the mysteries of complicated ancient iron technology through archaeometallurgical study which is rapidly growing discipline world wide. In this work an endeavour has been made eto understand the iron metallurgy of the yore in India with the help of ethnographical study of the tribes of Chhotanagpur (Jharkhand) and Bastar (Chhattisgarh). The region of Bastar unlike Chhotanagpur could not be served and included in the Agaria (the tribal demon who was born in flame) belt of autique iron smelters, but by field work it has been searched by the author that many tribes of Bastar were well versed with iron making technology for their rituals. How this technique was evolved in this region? Was it due to migration of some specific tribes other than Agaria or by the diffusion of technique only by contact and not by any real migration or it was spontaneously developed from its local resources on the principle of trial and error method. All possibilities are practically testifies in this work. This research also underlies the fact that does the change in the nature of one effect the change in technology? or in the event of no change in the nature of one, does the change of tribes make a change in technology? In this work the principle and technique of optical spectrometer, electron microscope, X-ray diffraction, chemical analysis and differential thermal analysis have been made by the author in solving the analytical problems of the development of primitive iron technology. The matalographic study of the internal metallic structure of the solid formed in their compound during solidification and subsequent its mechanical and thermal treatment effect is also discussed with special reference of iron. Before this work, there no attempt has yet been made by Indian scholars so far.