Celtic Steel

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Expand view Topic review: Celtic Steel

steel link added

by Comyn » Tue Jan 15, 2008 1:08 pm

I updated the post with the link to what I found. The entire article is available for a price.

Only Summary?

by Cormac » Tue Jan 15, 2008 12:34 pm

Is only the summary of that article available? I know some archaeological paper publishers only make the abstract publicly available.

Also, is the original in German? There are some metallurgical mistakes in the summary text and I'm wondering if it's a translation error.

"Annealing" is a slow cooling starting above critical temperature (1800F) not the rapid cooling described.

Also, phosphorus will not make iron hard like they claim only carbon does. P makes iron "hot short", brittle when at working temperature.

Cormac McInnean
Ollamh Gobae (Mastersmith)
Ancient Celtic Clans

Celtic Steel

by Comyn » Mon Jan 14, 2008 5:32 pm

While researching a little about the Ringgriffmesser described by Gobae, I found the following which might be of interest to smiths, and decided to post it here for lack of anyplace else to stick it.

Steel Materials in Celtic and Roman Periods – Part 2
Journal BHM Berg- und Hüttenmännische Monatshefte
Publisher Springer Wien
ISSN 0005-8912 (Print) 1613-7531 (Online)
Issue Volume 152, Number 7 / July, 2007

Summary

Celtic steel was a commodity much sought-after in the Roman Empire due to its outstanding quality. 34 Celtic steel artefacts from the archaeological sites of Gründberg/Linz and Magdalensberg/Carinthia, dating from Roman times (100 B. C. – 100 A. D.), have been subjected to microanalysis. As shown by the analysis of specimens based on steel samples from the province of Noricum, the single pieces consisted of numerous components of different steel grades. The result is a banded structure of the artefacts, which can be attributed to the forging technique usual in the Celtic era. First, several crude steel blanks were hammered into a bar. The workpiece was then got from these steel bars by fire-forging. Depending on the hardness and toughness required, unalloyed or alloyed steel grades were used. In the course of forging, hard elements were embedded in a matrix of softer metal (multilayer material). To achieve the desired hardness of the steel bars, one method was to add phosphorus or carbon. Alternatively, annealing in a charcoal bed at 1000 °C followed by rapid cooling was in use during Roman times. The results of the metallurgical assessment prove that the designation "quality product" for "Norican steel" is fully warranted.

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