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■ tter« was a fcaap of roasted ore, domestic hearths, and a maże of M ralatlig to tncillary buildings. As at the Plppingford site, the Hm tach built at the end of a short trench supporting the furnace | tao of tbea had large stone blocks forming the foundation of the Oiaiag the opea trench (Platę 2). It was apparent that while some I beta tapped lato the trench much still remalned ln the furnace after saeltiag.

THE POLISH SMELTING EXPERIMENTS IN FURNACES VITH SLAG P1TS

Elżbieta M Nosek

Archaeological Museum, Ul. Senacka 3, 31-002 Kraków, Ppland

ird bloomery slte within the study area was excavated by Money (1971

■

coaclusloa it ls suggested that these results prove that a fleldwork ted by saaple excavation, can produce worthwhile results provlded is large enougb to give slgnificance to the samples taken. In the large iron industry in the Roman period was revealed, probably organised, which seems to have come to an end after the second AD. Earlier pre-Roaan Iron Age techniąues of furnace building seem persisted, at least on those sites fully excavated. By medleval industry appears to have reverted to one supplying smali local

Abstract

This paper presents the results of smelting experiments which have been carrled out on reconstructed bloomery furnaces of the types excavated in the Holy Cross mountain region of Poland durlng the past twenty-flve years. These furnaces are typlfied by the presence of a sunken slag pit. In addltlon a knife has been madę from one of the iron blooms and its metallographic examinatlon ls reported.

wish to acknouledge the contribution of D M Meades in helpful and of H Tebbutt in preparing the illustrations.

Keywords:    POLAND, IRON, BLOOM, SMELTING, FURNACE,

EXPERIMENTAL, SHAPT, BELLOWS

lntroduction

C S 1970. Preliminary research findings relating to the bloomery of the iron Industry in the upper basin of the eastern Rother Sussec). Bulletin of the Historical Metallurgy Group, 4i, 18-20

C S 1971. A notę on the dating of bloomeries in the upper basin the eastern lother. Bulletin of the Historical Metallurgy Group, 5ii,

I F 1972. The classification of early iron-smeltlng furnaces. ries Journal, 52, 8-23

C M 1981. Pottery report. In Uealden bloomery iron smelting furnaces, F Tebbutt. Sussex Archaeological Collections, 119, 61-62

Jl 1971. Hedieval iron workings ln Minepit Uood, Rotherfield, Sussex. Archaeology, 15, 86-111

J B 1974. iron Age and Romano-British iron working slte ln Minepit I, lotherfield, Susaex. Historical Metallurgy, 81, 1-20

| i 1931. Healdeo Iron. London, Bell

C I I Cleere, H | 1973. A Romano-British bloomery at Plppingford, lartfleld. Susset Archaeological Collections, 111, 27-40

tt, C F 1979. The excavation of three Roman bloomery furnaces at fcrtfleld, Sussez. Suaser Archaeological Collections, 117, 47-56

I I 1981. Wealdcn bloomery iron smelting furnaces. Sussex Archaeo-ical Collections, 119, 57-63

In the northeastern part of the Holy Cross Mountains, which are Southwest of Warsaw, it is possible even today to flnd traces of an enormous smelting region which dates back to the period of Roman influence. Since 1955 the Museum of Archaeology in Cracow has been conducting a systematic research programme on these remains in close collaboration with metallurgists and technicians. Basically it consists of making detailed inventories of all the traces of metallurgical activity, as well as excavating a selection of sites.

Up to the present datę over 3000 separate smelting sites have been discovered by a combination of aerial photography and surveying on the ground, and we have estimated that the total number of smelting places in the area must be well over 4000 sińce only part of the region has so far been covered by the inventory programme. Each of these sites contains an average of about a hundred bloomery furnaces, and it has thus been estimated that the Holy Cross mountain region must have had about 400,000 individual bloomery furnaces. Up to the present time excavations have been carried out at morę than 120 of these sites.

The joint research programme has been conducted and supervised by Professor Kazimir Bielenln, the Deputy Dlrector of the Museum of Archaeology ln Cracow.

The ancient smelting region ln the Holy Cross Mountains area has been radlocarbon dated and the results backed up by ceramic dlscoveries. Both these methods lndlcate dates during the first four centuries of our era.

The excavatlon8 have establlshed that two klnds of smelting 'workshop' used to operate in the Holy Cross Mountains area: