Ancient ‘Cosmic’ Artifacts – Ancient Civilizations Used Meteoric Iron Much Earlier Than Previously Thought

AncientPages.com - Our ancestors were familiar with meteoric iron much earlier than previously thought.

Scientists have determined ancient civilizations constructed remarkable artifacts made of iron from meteorites thousands of years ago.

There are iron artifacts dating back to the Bronze Age, but their meteorite origin is even more astonishing.

Ancient Cosmic Artifacts - Ancient Civilizations Used Meteoric Iron Much Earlier Than Previously Thought

In his science paper, Bronze Age Iron: Meteoritic or not? A Chemical Strategy, Albert Jambon from the Institut de minéralogie, de physique des matériaux et de cosmochimie (CNRS / UPMC / IRD / Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle), has demonstrated that iron used during the Bronze Age is always meteoric. He also explains how this practice was abandoned during the Iron Age.

Extremely Rare And Valuable Ancient Artifacts Made Of Meteoric Iron

The Iron Age began in Anatolia and the Caucasus around 1200 BCE. But nearly 2,000 years earlier, various cultures were already fashioning objects out of iron. These items were extremely rare and always greatly treasured.

An exquisitely decorated golden dagger found inside the sarcophagus of Tutankhamun has been found to have a blade made from iron that came from a meteorite. Image credit: Daniela Comelli/Polytechnic University of Milan)

An exquisitely decorated golden dagger found inside the sarcophagus of Tutankhamun has been found to have a blade made from iron that came from a meteorite. Image credit: Daniela Comelli/Polytechnic University of Milan)

Jambon has examined iron artifacts  such as beads from Gerzeh (Egypt, −3200 BCE); a dagger from Alaca Höyük (Turkey, −2500 BCE); a pendant from Umm el-Marra (Syria, −2300 BCE); an axe from Ugarit (Syria, −1400 BCE) and several others from the Shang dynasty civilization (China, −1400 BCE); and the dagger, bracelet, and headrest of Tutankhamen (Egypt, −1350 BCE). All of these were made of meteoric iron.

See also:

Telangana And Great Ancient Iron Masterwork Of Skilled Blacksmiths Of India

Does Celtic Art Have Links With Iron Age Art Of The Eurasian Steppes?

The Iron Man In The Kottenforst And Other Puzzling Ancient Artifacts Of Unknown Origin And Purpose

When large celestial bodies like our planet are forming, nearly all nickel drifts towards the molten iron core. Thus, it is extremely rare to find nickel on the surface. However, some meteorites are created when celestial bodies are shattered.

If these meteorites are composed of core material, they mostly contain iron with high levels of nickel and cobalt. This characteristic makes it possible to identify the source of iron. Meteoric iron is also already in a metal state, ready for use, which explains why it went into all Bronze Age iron artifacts.

Ancient Cosmic Artifacts - Ancient Civilizations Used Meteoric Iron Much Earlier Than Previously Thought

Recent studies have traced some Bronze Age ironworks to meteoric sources. In 2013, experts confirmed that beads discovered on a necklace that was first excavated in 1911 were, in fact, made from space rock. Credit: UCL Petrie Museum

In contrast, the iron compounds in terrestrial ores must first undergo the process of reduction, which removes bound oxygen to yield the desired metal. This is the basis of smelting in furnaces, a breakthrough that marked the beginning of the Iron Age.

With smelting, Iron Age cultures could forget rare extraterrestrial metal and tap into terrestrial iron ores, which were far more abundant and easier to procure. Albert Jambon's findings refute certain theories proposing that nickel-laden iron alloys were obtained from terrestrial ores.

Even King Tutankhamun had a ‘cosmic’ dagger.

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CNRS

Albert Jambon. Bronze Age iron: Meteoritic or not? A chemical strategy.. Journal of Archaeological Science, 2017; 88: 47 DOI: 10.1016/j.jas.2017.09.008