The use of bloomery iron in Chengdu Plain during the Easter Han dynasty: evidence from slag inclusions included in iron artifacts

Abstract

On the basis of multivariate statistical methods, the present paper analyzed slag inclusions trapped in iron samples from the Baozishan cemetery site in Chengdu Plain of the Eastern Han dynasty (25 AD – 220 AD). The results reveal that forged iron tools from the site were all made from bloomery iron and the only weapon was forged from fined iron. As Chengdu Plain was believed to be an iron production center with cast iron tradition, the technology change revealed in the study may be due to the abolition of the iron monopoly policy and then bloomery process became another choice for independent handicraftsmen.