As a pure metal, copper is one of the easier metals to work with and not difficult to cold hammer into different shapes. While it probably doesn't make a great ax, it has been used for many other helpful implements that aided in shaping history. Over thousands of years, the use of metals has altered societies, so profoundly that eras in human development are labeled by them in the Bronze and Iron Ages. 

Copper is not found throughout the world in a pure nugget form like that of the Great Lakes Basin. It's most commonly found embedded in a matrix, of "sedimentary or volcanogenic rock."(Tourtelot and Vine 1976) This would require an extraction process, smelting, to separate the metal from the host rock by crushing and then heating to extremely high temperatures. Experimental archaeologists have recreated this process giving us a insight into how these ancient peoples managed to procure the metals necessary to craft tools, decorative items, weapons, and implements of daily survival. 

Tourtelot, E.B. and Vine, J.D. 1976 '"Copper deposits in sedimentary and volcanogenic rocks" U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper [Preprint]. https://doi.org/10.3133/pp907c.

Metallurgy has been a driving force in shaping our history and continues to have a significant impact on our lives today. Over thousands of years, humans have used metals like gold, copper, bronze, and iron to create tools, weapons, and ornaments. The use of metals has considerably impacted human history and society, so much so that we have named entire eras after the metals bronze and iron. Advancements in metallurgy has led to periods of great economic, cultural advancements and impacted every component of human civilization from weaponry and warfare, agriculture and trade, transportation and settlement. There is no part of human life today that has not been touched by the impacts of metallurgy. 

An early discovery, Gold was too soft to be useful except for creating beautiful ornaments. Copper was the next significant advancement, which could be hot or cold hammered or alloyed with other minerals to produce bronze. Bronze was incredibly useful for creating weapons, tools, and ornaments, and it marked the end of the Stone Age. 

Eventually, bronze was replaced with iron, which was even harder and stronger. Iron was initially used for ornamental purposes, but the development of coking allowed for a harder and more durable version of iron called steel. Iron continued to develop independently in different parts of the world, such as sub-Saharan Africa. Iron Age cultures lasted over a thousand years in Europe and persisted in Africa until the 19th century.

As beneficial to human development metallurgy has been, it has also had environmental impacts through deforestation and mining operations and has had societal implications such as cultural and military advancements. The use of metals has played a pivotal role in shaping human civilization and how we interact with the world around us.


Source credit "Metallurgy through the Ages ." Science and Its Times: Understanding the Social Significance of Scientific Discovery. . Encyclopedia.com. 18 Oct. 2023 <https://www.encyclopedia.com>.

Archaeologists have dated a copper awl found at the Tel Tsaf site in Turkey to the late 6th or early 5th century BCE showing that at least 7000 years ago copper was collected and forged into tools. Modern metalsmiths use gas torches, kilns, and the latest safety gear to manipulate metals but thousands of years ago, without any of these things, people were still able to make metal objects.  If you are anything like me, you are wondering how they did this? I am hoping to find out! (Choi 2014)

Image Credit: www.livescience.com/47501-oldest-metal-object-middle-east.html

Choi, Charles Q. 2014. “Oldest Metal Object in Middle East Discovered in Woman’s Grave.” LiveScience August 22, 2014. Accessed November 1, 2023. www.livescience.com/47501-oldest-metal-object-middle-east.html
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​Were Native Americans in Wisconson the worlds first coppersmiths? 

In a 2021 study published in Radiocarbon, archaeologists believe that "the Old Copper Culture emerged at least 9500 years ago and peaked between 7000 and 5000 years ago."  This suggests that the copper artifacts of Indigenous peoples of the Lake Superior Basin are at least as old, perhaps older than cultures in the Middle East.  (Pompeani and Steinman and Abbott 2021)

The Lake Superior Basin is an area rich with native copper deposits. Nearly pure and sometimes found in nugget form on the ground, it was an easy pathway into metal smithing because the nuggets would not require the added material preparation of extracting the metal from a host ore or quartz. If one found an appropriately sized nugget, it could be cold hammered into the desired shape. More on cold hammering later! 
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Pompeani, David P. and Byron A Steinman and Mark B Abbott. 2021. "On the Timing of the Old Copper Complex in North America: A Comparison of Radiocarbon Dates From Different Archaeological Contexts." Radiocarbon. 63(2). Cambridge University Press: 513–531 LINK

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https://www.science.org/content/article/ancient-native-americans-were-among-world-s-first-coppersmiths#:~:text=Ancient%20Native%20Americans%20were%20among%20the%20world's%20first%20coppersmiths%20%7C%20Science%20%7C%20AAAS

​I thought metallurgy was just, metal smithing as in obtaining and using metal to make something.  After reading the Wikipedia page on metallurgy, I think I need to change the title page of this blog. Metallurgy is the ancient science and art of working with metals, but according to Wikipedia, it is a whole lot more than that. Did you know that you can earn a degree in metallurgy and that is is considered both a science and a technology? Me neither! It also involves engineering and chemistry, and a whole lot more than that. One interesting thing I learned on Wikipedia  is that "The earliest use of lead is documented from the late neolithic settlements of Yarim Tepe and Arpachiyah in Iraq. The artifacts suggest that lead smelting predated copper smelting." ("Metallurgy", 2023)

What? I thought I had found the earliest evidence of metallurgy. I was right (in my own mind) for one day.  I will have my slice of humble pie later today, thank you very much.

Metallurgy is different than metalworking and can be broken into two different scientific focuses, chemical and physical. Chemical metallurgy focuses on "reduction and oxidation of metals, and the chemical performance of metals" where physical metallurgy "focuses on the mechanical properties of metals, the physical properties of metals, and the physical performance of metals" . ("Metallurgy", 2023) You can see how both sciences would be important in archaeology since the processes and changes to metal artifacts can reveal important clues about the movement, manufacturing, procurement, chaîne opératoire, and ultimately about the people that used them. 

Metallurgy. (2023, November 18). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metallurgy