{"title":"薛池祭祀遗址出土铁器的考古计量研究及其对中国西汉早期冶铁业的启示","authors":"Yaxiong Liu, Yaqi Tian, Kunlong Chen","doi":"10.1111/arcm.12952","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p>Metallographic examination and compositional study of slag inclusions on iron objects unearthed from Xuechi in Shaanxi, China, have revealed the smelting and manufacturing techniques employed at this Western Han dynasty sacrificial site. The results suggest two production systems among the samples: all knives, nails, and farming implements were made from cast iron that had been decarburised/malleablised through annealing or fining process. It is proposed that these samples were produced in designated state-owned workshop. Two horse-bit sets, on the other hand, were forged into shape using both bloomery iron and fined iron from various sources, with possible repairing and recycling involved in the manufacturing process. It is therefore argued that the horse bits found in the site came with the horse and had been produced separately from the other iron objects. Furthermore, this paper argues that although cast iron-based production was the main method for large-scale iron production, small-scale bloomery iron smelting may have been practiced during the Western Han dynasty in certain regions as an alternate but economically viable method.</p>","PeriodicalId":8254,"journal":{"name":"Archaeometry","volume":"66 5","pages":"1050-1062"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5000,"publicationDate":"2024-01-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":"{\"title\":\"Archaeometric study of the iron objects from the Xuechi sacrificial site and its implication for bloomery iron smelting during early Western Han period in China\",\"authors\":\"Yaxiong Liu, Yaqi Tian, Kunlong Chen\",\"doi\":\"10.1111/arcm.12952\",\"DOIUrl\":null,\"url\":null,\"abstract\":\"<p>Metallographic examination and compositional study of slag inclusions on iron objects unearthed from Xuechi in Shaanxi, China, have revealed the smelting and manufacturing techniques employed at this Western Han dynasty sacrificial site. The results suggest two production systems among the samples: all knives, nails, and farming implements were made from cast iron that had been decarburised/malleablised through annealing or fining process. It is proposed that these samples were produced in designated state-owned workshop. Two horse-bit sets, on the other hand, were forged into shape using both bloomery iron and fined iron from various sources, with possible repairing and recycling involved in the manufacturing process. It is therefore argued that the horse bits found in the site came with the horse and had been produced separately from the other iron objects. Furthermore, this paper argues that although cast iron-based production was the main method for large-scale iron production, small-scale bloomery iron smelting may have been practiced during the Western Han dynasty in certain regions as an alternate but economically viable method.</p>\",\"PeriodicalId\":8254,\"journal\":{\"name\":\"Archaeometry\",\"volume\":\"66 5\",\"pages\":\"1050-1062\"},\"PeriodicalIF\":1.5000,\"publicationDate\":\"2024-01-21\",\"publicationTypes\":\"Journal Article\",\"fieldsOfStudy\":null,\"isOpenAccess\":false,\"openAccessPdf\":\"\",\"citationCount\":\"0\",\"resultStr\":null,\"platform\":\"Semanticscholar\",\"paperid\":null,\"PeriodicalName\":\"Archaeometry\",\"FirstCategoryId\":\"89\",\"ListUrlMain\":\"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/arcm.12952\",\"RegionNum\":3,\"RegionCategory\":\"地球科学\",\"ArticlePicture\":[],\"TitleCN\":null,\"AbstractTextCN\":null,\"PMCID\":null,\"EPubDate\":\"\",\"PubModel\":\"\",\"JCR\":\"0\",\"JCRName\":\"ARCHAEOLOGY\",\"Score\":null,\"Total\":0}","platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Archaeometry","FirstCategoryId":"89","ListUrlMain":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/arcm.12952","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"0","JCRName":"ARCHAEOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
Archaeometric study of the iron objects from the Xuechi sacrificial site and its implication for bloomery iron smelting during early Western Han period in China
Metallographic examination and compositional study of slag inclusions on iron objects unearthed from Xuechi in Shaanxi, China, have revealed the smelting and manufacturing techniques employed at this Western Han dynasty sacrificial site. The results suggest two production systems among the samples: all knives, nails, and farming implements were made from cast iron that had been decarburised/malleablised through annealing or fining process. It is proposed that these samples were produced in designated state-owned workshop. Two horse-bit sets, on the other hand, were forged into shape using both bloomery iron and fined iron from various sources, with possible repairing and recycling involved in the manufacturing process. It is therefore argued that the horse bits found in the site came with the horse and had been produced separately from the other iron objects. Furthermore, this paper argues that although cast iron-based production was the main method for large-scale iron production, small-scale bloomery iron smelting may have been practiced during the Western Han dynasty in certain regions as an alternate but economically viable method.
期刊介绍:
Archaeometry is an international research journal covering the application of the physical and biological sciences to archaeology, anthropology and art history. Topics covered include dating methods, artifact studies, mathematical methods, remote sensing techniques, conservation science, environmental reconstruction, biological anthropology and archaeological theory. Papers are expected to have a clear archaeological, anthropological or art historical context, be of the highest scientific standards, and to present data of international relevance.
The journal is published on behalf of the Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art, Oxford University, in association with Gesellschaft für Naturwissenschaftliche Archäologie, ARCHAEOMETRIE, the Society for Archaeological Sciences (SAS), and Associazione Italian di Archeometria.