Blacksmiths appear c. 1500 BCE. Metallurgy and metal workers date back to c. 7000 BCE, working metals such as native copper and gold. The blacksmith is an iron and steel specialist. The name blacksmith comes from the soot of the forge.
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Blacksmiths know how to heat metals to high temperatures and change their forms and properties, a feat otherwise accomplished only by the Earth herself, or the gods. Smiths are associated both with both creation and the occult. Metallurgy is the ancestor of alchemy.
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In early northern mythology, Dwarfs are metallurgists and smiths of the earth. Prominent in Germanic lore (pre-Disney) they're cryptic people emerging from the caverns of the earth, womb of the Mother Goddess with gems and metals, metal-working wisdom and technology.
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The blacksmith works with primal elements and secrets of transmutation. Smiths of myth include Hephaestus of the Greek gods, and later Germanic Wayland the Smith. The Iron Age and advent of steel create a demand for skilled metal workers.
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Blacksmithing begins in the empire of the Hittites, who are among the first people to forge and temper iron. At first, smiths have no specialized tools, and work iron and other metals with all-purpose equipment. An advantage to smithing is the ability to make one's own tools.
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Iron has been worked since prehistory. Before humans gain the ability to extract iron ore, a common iron source is meteorites. Iron is more fragile than earlier bronze, an alloy of copper (88%) and tin (12%). Non-copper metals in bronze can also include arsenic.
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Iron ore is the 4th most common element in the Earth's crust, making up 5% of mass. It's typically found as an iron oxide such as magnetite or hematite. These stones are often magnetic, suggestive of their iron content.
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Metals can be smelted in crucibles. A ceramic, stone or metal container, a crucible is used for melting or high-temperature heating of metals and other substances. Crucibles can be used to create ingots, or specific measurements of metal.
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The first crucibles are made of clay. Earliest crucibles date to c. 6th millennium BCE in Eastern Europe and Iran. During the Chalcolithic Age blowpipes are used to heat crucibles from the top. In the Middle Ages large crucibles are made into bells.
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Metals such as tin, lead and copper can be separated from ores by heating the rocks with carbon in an early type of smelter, a bloomery. Made of stone, clay, earth or a combination, the bloomery may be set up on the farmstead.
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Iron ore is usually a mixture of iron and large amounts of impurities including sand and clay, called gangue. Iron found in ores is extracted by mixing ore with limestone and coal at high heat. The process develops as mankind experiments with low melt point metals such as tin.
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Ancient blacksmiths increase the strength of metals by creating alloys. Early iron and steel workers forge such objects as weapons, shields, armor, chisels, knives, saws, pots, or nails, and reinforce ships and buildings. Cauldrons are important Iron Age inventions.
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On farmsteads the farmer might learn the skills necessary for smelting and molding metals. In history, blacksmiths are usually men. A few women also practice the skills. The first farrier, a specialist in blacksmithing combined with horse hoof and leg care, appears c. 400 BCE.
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Iron is known as the 'black metal'. It's a soft gray color when shined. Exposed to air it's quickly covered with a black oxide, a kind of rust. A blacksmith's fire can cause fast formation of the black oxide.
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In myth, gods Hephaestus of the Greek, Vulcan of the Romans and Vulkan of the German tribes are patrons of the craft. These gods are attuned to Earth and Fire, and dwell in the subterranean realm of humans. They connect to primeval elements and magic of creation.
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Egyptian Ptah, creator god of artists and craftspeople, is patron of ancient Egyptian Memphis (Giza) and also the god of blacksmiths. Other gods and goddesses of the fiery forge include:
Africa:
Ikenga, Alusi (spirit) of time, success, achievement, farming, blacksmiths, and industry
Ogun, patron god of warriors, soldiers, blacksmiths, metal workers, and craftsmen
Arabia
Qaynan, Sabean patron god of smiths
Celtic
Brigid, goddess of spring, blacksmiths, fertility, healing, and poetry
Gobannus, Gallo-Roman deity whose name means 'the smith'
Gofannon, Welsh god of blacksmithing, ale, architecture and building
Goibniu, Irish god of blacksmithing, one of the Trí Dée Dána
Lugh, god of craftsmen, games, arts, oaths, truth, and law
Circassian
Tlepsh, god of fire, smithing, metal, weapons and virility
Finnish
Ilmarinen, god of blacksmithing and archetypal artificer.
Greek
Athena, goddess of wisdom, handicraft, and warfare
Hephaestus, god of metalworking and the forge
Germanic
Vulkan, god of metalworking
Greco-Roman
Vulcan, god of metalworking and the forge
Hindu
Ribhus, originally a sun deity, personified by three male artisans
Vishvakarman, architect of the gods
Hittite
Ḫašamili (Hashamili) god of metal working
Hungarian
Hadúr, god of metalworking and war
Japanese
Ame-no-Mahitotsu, god of metal-working and blacksmiths
Kagu-tsuchi, patron god of blacksmiths, ceramic workers, and fire
Meite
Pisatao, god of architecture and crafts
Mesopotamian
Gibil, fire god
Nordic
Thor, god of lightning, thunder, storms, sacred groves and trees, strength
Ossetian
Kurdalægon, god of blacksmiths
Ugaritic
Kothar-wa-Khasis, patron god of metalworking
Vietnam
Bà Kim, goddess of metal and blacksmithing
Tổ nghề Khổng Lồ, god of bronze casting
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Steel objects are found as early as 1800 BCE, the middle Bronze Age. Steel is hardened or tempered through heat treatment. The earliest industrial level steel production is in 13th century BCE in Hittite Anatolia, and c. 900 BCE in Egypt.
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