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Add BCE temporal tags to all documents; add temporal-dating steering doc

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daniel
2026-02-22 23:38:12 +00:00
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technologies/iron-smelting.md
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# Iron Smelting
## Overview
The development of iron smelting technology (~1200 BCE onward) ushered in the Iron Age, making metal tools and weapons accessible beyond elite classes and transforming agriculture, warfare, and society.
The development of iron smelting technology (~1200 BCE onward) ushered in the Iron Age, making metal tools and weapons accessible beyond elite classes and transforming agriculture, warfare, and society. @t[~1200 BCE]
## Key Facts
- Transition period: ~1200–800 BCE (varies by region)
- Earliest iron smelting: Anatolia (Hittites), ~1500 BCE (limited use)
- Widespread adoption: After the Bronze Age Collapse (~1200 BCE)
- Transition period: ~1200–800 BCE (varies by region) @t[1200 BCE..800 BCE]
- Earliest iron smelting: Anatolia (Hittites), ~1500 BCE (limited use) @t[~1500 BCE]
- Widespread adoption: After the Bronze Age Collapse (~1200 BCE) @t[~1200 BCE]
- Key innovation: Carburization (adding carbon to create steel)
## Development
- Meteoric iron used before smelting was developed
- Hittites may have been early innovators, though evidence is debated [^1]
- Iron became widespread after the Bronze Age Collapse disrupted tin trade routes
- Chinese independently developed cast iron by ~500 BCE (bloomery iron in the West until medieval period) [^2]
- Chinese independently developed cast iron by ~500 BCE (bloomery iron in the West until medieval period) @t[~500 BCE] [^2]
## Impact
- Democratized access to metal tools (iron ore is abundant, unlike tin)