New methods for investigating slag heaps: Integrating geoprospection, excavation and quantitative methods at Meroe, Sudan

Humphris, Jane; Carey, Christopher

doi:10.1016/j.jas.2016.04.022

Cited by 36 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…Little is known of the Meroitic smelting techniques other than that the later furnace operation included a proviso for tapping slag. Recent excavations show that significant amounts of slag also formed within the furnace, and that much of the slag was either produced as small pieces or broke into small fragments upon removal (Humphris and Carey 2016). Slag analyses reveal a clean fayalitic slag with little wüstite present (Rehren 2001;Tylecote 1982;Humphris 2014).…”

Section: Smelting Techniquesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Iron Smelting in Sudan: Experimental Archaeology at The Royal City of Meroe

Humphris

Charlton

Keen

et al. 2018

Journal of Field Archaeology

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The Royal City of Meroe, ca. 200 km north of Khartoum in the modern-day Republic of the Sudan, was an ancient capital of the Kingdom of Kush. From the 3rd century B.C. to the 4th century A.D., Kushite rulers controlled significant territory from the banks of the Nile at Meroe, in part through their ability to ensure the production of significant quantities of iron. The extensive archaeological remains of Meroitic iron production have been investigated over decades, and recently a series of experimental iron smelts in a replica Meroitic furnace has shed new light on the archaeometallurgical evidence. The data generated during the smelting campaigns has provided an understanding of the type of iron ore used, the construction and operating parameters of the furnace, and the workshop space created by the ancient iron smelters during the later and post-Meroitic times.

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Section: Smelting Techniquesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Iron Smelting in Sudan: Experimental Archaeology at The Royal City of Meroe

Humphris

Charlton

Keen

et al. 2018

Journal of Field Archaeology

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“…However, our present understanding of the nature and scale of Kushite iron production, based on the results of a few previous studies, is far from conclusive (Garstang et al, 1911;Rehren, 1995Rehren, , 1996Rehren, , 1997Rehren, , 2001Rehren et al, 1995;Shinnie, 1985;Shinnie and Kense, 1982;Trigger, 1969;Tylecote, 1970Tylecote, , 1982. Against this background, UCL Qatar's archaeometallurgical research was initiated to fill important research gaps in current understandings of iron production during different periods of Kushite history by using a multidisciplinary approach (Humphris, 2014;Humphris and Carey, 2016;Humphris and Rehren, 2014;Charlton and Humphris, forthcoming;Humphris and Scheibner, forthcoming).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The technology and craft organisation of Kushite technical ceramic production at Meroe and Hamadab, Sudan

Ting

Humphris

2017

Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports

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This paper seeks to contribute to the growing knowledge of iron production in ancient Sudan by examining the technology and craft organisation involved in the production of technical ceramics, which were integral to the iron smelting process. The focus of this study are the technical ceramics including tuyères, furnace linings, and furnace bricks, recovered from various slag heaps located at the archaeological sites of the Royal City of Meroe and the Meroitic town site of Hamadab. We used macroscopic examination and thin-section petrography to identify the source of raw materials and methods used in preparing the raw materials, to characterise the level of craft specialisation, and to infer the broader socio-political developments that might have influenced how the production of technical ceramics was organised. The resulting data reveal that changes occurred within the production of technical ceramics throughout different periods of Kushite history (traditionally divided into Napatan and Meroitic) and during the post-Meroitic period, and we argue that the observed changes might have been related to the rise and fall of the Kingdom of Kush. The production of technical ceramics was marked by clear distinctions in raw materials and paste preparation methods used for different types of technical ceramics, and a high degree of compositional and technological homogeneity within each type of technical ceramic during the Napatan and earlier Meroitic periods, coinciding with the time when Kush rose to and was at the height of its power. The production of technical ceramics appears to have exhibited more diversity in terms of the raw materials and paste preparation methods and lower degree of homogeneity during the later and post-Meroitic periods when the economic and political influence and power of the Kingdom of Kush is described as declining and ultimately ceasing to exist. Perhaps the most drastic change in the production of technical ceramics took place in the post-Meroitic period, which was characterised by lower level of specialisation, as well as the possibility of using a different technological approach to iron smelting.

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“…Size and shape can inform us about the number of smelting episodes as well as the organization of spaces of production. Recent work at Meroe in northern Africa successfully applied multiple techniques (i.e., geophysical, excavation, quantitative) to document the structure of a large mound in the capital (Humphris and Carey 2016). These labor-intensive tests are effective, but unsuitable for documenting large numbers of sites across a vast landscape.…”

Section: Documenting Iron Productionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Smelting in the Shadow of the Iron Mountain: Preliminary Field Investigation of the Industrial Landscape around Phnom Dek, Cambodia (Ninth to Twentieth Centuries a.d.)

Hendrickson¹,

Leroy²,

Hua³

et al. 2017

Asian Perspectives

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International audienceThe high-grade mineral ores of the Phnom Dek region in central Cambodia have long been suspected of playing a major role in the rise of Angkor, the largest medieval polity in mainland Southeast Asia. This article presents the first comprehensive study by the Industries of Angkor Project (INDAP) to document the extent of industrial activity in this region and test this important relationship. Using a combination of intensive field survey, surface collection, and archaeometallurgical analysis, we evaluate the temporal and spatial patterning of iron production and the heterogeneity of smelting systems. The identification of at least three different smelting traditions has a significant impact on the current view that twentieth-century Kuay smelting practices extend deep into Cambodia’s history, and their relationship with Angkor in particular. More broadly, the survey demonstrates the importance of Phnom Dek as a major production zone on par with more well-known examples in Roman Europe and Africa

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New methods for investigating slag heaps: Integrating geoprospection, excavation and quantitative methods at Meroe, Sudan

Cited by 36 publications

References 18 publications

Iron Smelting in Sudan: Experimental Archaeology at The Royal City of Meroe

Iron Smelting in Sudan: Experimental Archaeology at The Royal City of Meroe

The technology and craft organisation of Kushite technical ceramic production at Meroe and Hamadab, Sudan

Smelting in the Shadow of the Iron Mountain: Preliminary Field Investigation of the Industrial Landscape around Phnom Dek, Cambodia (Ninth to Twentieth Centuries a.d.)

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