History of Metalworking

No one knows with any certainty where or when metalworking began. The advance that brought metal into focus was the connection of fire and metals. Who did it is unknown, but the Egyptians are thought to have been one of the first civilizations to work gold.

Not all metals require fire to obtain them or work them. For instance, gold is found in nature as nuggets of pure gold. In other words, gold, as rare as it is, is always found in nature as the metal. There are a few other metals that sometimes occur natively or as a result of meteors. Almost all other metals are found in ores, minerals bearing rock, which require heating or some other processes to liberate the metal. Another feature of gold is that it is workable as it is found, meaning that no technology besides eyes to find a nugget and a hammer and an anvil to work the metal is needed. Stone hammer and stone anvil will be enough for technology. This is the result of such properties of gold as malleability and ductility. The earliest tools were made of stone, bone and wood. They could be used to work gold.

At some unknown point the connection between heat and the liberation of metals from rock became clear, and rocks rich in copper, tin, and lead came into demand. These ores were mined wherever they were recognized. Remnants of such ancient mines have been found all over what is today the Middle East. Metalworking was carried out in South Asia between 7,000–3,300 BC. The end of the first period of metalworking was some time around 6,000 BC when copper smelting became common in the Middle East.

The ancients knew seven metals: iron, tin, lead, copper, mercury, silver, gold. Each of them has its own oxidation potential. The oxidation potential is important because it indicates how tightly bound to the ore the metal is. The oxidation potential of iron is significantly higher than that of the other six metals, while that of gold is dramatically lower. The low oxidation of gold is one of the main reasons for gold being found in nuggets. These nuggets are relatively pure gold and are workable as they are found.

Copper ore, being relatively abundant, and tin ore became the next important players in the history of metalworking. Using heat to smelt copper from ore, a great deal of copper was produced. It was used for both jewelry and simple tools. However, copper by itself was too soft for tools requiring edges and stiffness. At some point tin was added into the molten copper and bronze was born. Bronze was an important advance because it had the edge-durability and stiffness that copper lacked. Until the appearance of iron, bronze had been the most advanced metal for tools and weapons in common use.

Around the date 2,700 BC production of bronze was common in areas where the necessary materials could be assembled for smelting, heating, and working the metal. Iron was beginning to be smelted. Iron began to be used as an important metal for tools and weapons. The Iron Age was dawning.

1. Find in the text English equivalents for the following words and word-combinations:

Древні шахти, виробництво бронзи, тісно пов'язаний, розплавлена мідь, кам'яне ковадло, основні причини, самі перші інструменти, інша особливість, обробляти золото, вимагати нагрівання, відносно чистий, занадто м'який, стали користуватися попитом, залишки таких давніх шахт, до появи, відносно поширений.

1. Answer the following questions:

1. Is the exact date of the beginning of metalworking known?

2. Which of the first civilizations began to work gold?

3. Are most metals found in pure state or in ores?

4. Can nugget of pure gold be found in nature?

5. Why is gold easily workable?

6. How many metals did ancient people know?

7. What does the oxidation potential of a metal show?

8. Was it possible to use pure copper to produce tools?

9. What is the advantage of bronze over copper?