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A Technology of Multiple Smelting Furnaces per Termite Mound: Iron Production in Chongwe, Lusaka, Zambia
Journal of African Archaeology ( IF 1.0 ) Pub Date : 2020-04-27 , DOI: 10.1163/21915784-20200004
Edwinus C. Lyaya 1 , Shadreck Chirikure 2 , Philip E. Janney 3 , Thilo Rehren 4
Affiliation  

With exception of Maluma (1979) and Musambachime (2016, 2017), there have been no archaeometallurgical publications on the technology and culture of iron production in Zambia. This paper presents archaeological and archaeometallurgical evidence of a technology of iron production in Chongwe in terms of spatial organization, the process of metal production (either a three-stage process involving smelting in relatively tall furnaces, refining in miniature (vintengwe) furnaces, and smithing on a hearth or a two-stage process involving smelting and smithing), furnace air supply mechanisms, liquid slag handling techniques, variation in the geochemistry of ore and clay, and the nature of the final smelting products. Archaeological field data collection techniques included ethnoarchaeological interviews, (furnace) excavation, surface collections, and surface walkover surveys, while laboratory analytical techniques included optical microscopy (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and x-ray fluorescence (XRF). New field evidence indicates that iron production in Chongwe in the previous two centuries was secluded from respective pre-modern settlements for socio-cultural and technical reasons. There are no settlement remains in and around Chongwe smelting sites. Also, most of the archaeological data in Chongwe are supportive of the two-stage process that did not involve iron refining in vintengwe furnaces. There were no iron refining sites in Chongwe. Archaeological evidence also strongly points to the use of natural air supply mechanism for the smelting furnaces because proximal ends of tuyères inter alia were not trumpeted. All smelting sites were systematically located on termite mounds. There were three to four smelting furnaces located on the western side of a termite mound. The presence of tuyère mould slags and thin and elongated slag microstructures strongly indicates that liquid slag was tapped outside the furnace apparently through tuyères and was left to cool quickly. Presence of primary wüstite and iron particles in the slags strongly suggests the production of iron as the final smelting product in Chongwe. The results are compared with the archaeology, chemistry, and mineralogy of iron production from other parts of sub-Saharan Africa, particularly in the Lake Tanganyika-Nyasa Corridor. The presence of three to four smelting furnaces per termite mound makes iron production in Chongwe a unique technology in the Corridor.



中文翻译:

每只白蚁丘多炉窑的技术:赞比亚卢萨卡Chongwe的炼铁

除Maluma(1979)和Musambachime(2016,2017)外,赞比亚没有关于铁生产技术和文化的考古冶金出版物。本文从空间组织,金属生产过程(包括在相对较高的熔炉中冶炼,在微型精炼中进行的三阶段过程)的角度,介绍了崇威铁矿生产技术的考古学和考古学证据。)熔炉,炉床上的熔炼或涉及熔炼和熔炼的两阶段工艺),熔炉供气机理,液渣处理技术,矿石和粘土的地球化学变化以及最终熔炼产品的性质。考古现场数据收集技术包括民族考古采访,(熔炉)挖掘,表面收集和表面走行调查,而实验室分析技术包括光学显微镜(OM),扫描电子显微镜(SEM)和X射线荧光(XRF))。新的实地证据表明,由于社会文化和技术原因,过去两个世纪中崇威的铁矿生产与各自的近代聚居区隔离开来。崇威冶炼厂及其周围没有定居点。同样,崇威的大多数考古数据都支持不涉及在文登格威熔炉中进行铁精炼的两阶段过程。崇威没有炼铁厂。考古学证据也强烈指出在冶炼炉中使用自然空气供应机制,因为风口的近端尤其是不吹牛。所有冶炼场所均系统地位于白蚁丘上。在白蚁丘的西侧有三到四个熔炉。风口模渣的存在以及薄而细长的渣微结构的存在强烈表明,液体炉渣显然是通过风口从炉子中排出的,并迅速冷却。矿渣中存在初生纤铁矿和铁颗粒,强烈表明在崇威生产铁是最终的冶炼产品。将结果与撒哈拉以南非洲其他地区,特别是坦Tang尼喀湖-尼亚萨走廊的铁生产的考古学,化学和矿物学进行了比较。每个白蚁丘有三到四个熔炉,使崇威的铁生产成为走廊中的一项独特技术。

更新日期:2020-04-27
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