Did Iron Age 'begin' in India? Tamil Nadu digs spark debate

For over two decades, archaeologists in Tamil Nadu, a state in southern India, have been excavating clues to the region's ancient history. Their excavations have unearthed early scripts that rewrite literacy timelines, charted maritime trade routes connecting India to the world, and revealed advanced urban settlements, reinforcing the state's role as a cradle of early civilization and global commerce.

Now, they have also discovered something even older – potentially the earliest evidence of iron production and use. One of the earliest known regions for large-scale mining, extraction, and forging of iron is present-day Turkey, around the 13th century BCE. Archaeologists have discovered iron artifacts at six sites in Tamil Nadu, dating back to 2953-3345 BCE, or 5000 to 5400 years ago. This suggests that the process of extracting, smelting, forging, and shaping iron to create tools, weapons, and other objects may have developed independently in the Indian subcontinent.

“This discovery is very important, and its implications will take some time to unfold,” said Dilip Kumar Chakrabarti, a professor of South Asian archaeology at Cambridge University. The latest discoveries from the Adichanallur, Sivakalai, Mayiladumparai, Keeladi, Mangadu, and Terku Veerapandi sites have made headlines in local news, such as "Did the Iron Age Begin in Tamil Nadu?" The Iron Age marks the period when societies began to widely use and produce iron, crafting tools, weapons, and infrastructure.

P. Ajithprasad, an archaeology professor at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER), urges caution before drawing broad conclusions. He believes that iron technology likely "emerged independently in multiple regions." Furthermore, "the earliest evidence remains uncertain because many regions of the world have not been adequately studied, or archaeological evidence is known but has not been properly dated."

If the Tamil Nadu findings are further validated through rigorous academic research, "it will certainly rank among the earliest records in the world," said Mr. Ajithprasad. Oishimaya Roy, an archaeologist at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), added that the discovery "suggests parallel developments (in iron production) in different parts of the world." Early iron existed in two forms – meteoric iron and smelted iron. Smelted iron, extracted from ore, marks the beginning of true iron technology for mass production. The earliest known iron artifacts – nine tubular beads – were made from meteoric iron, which comes from fallen meteorites.

Identifying iron-bearing rocks is the first challenge. Once found, these ores must be smelted in furnaces at extremely high temperatures to extract the metal. Without this process, raw iron remains locked within the rock. After extraction, skilled blacksmiths shape the metal into tools and implements, marking a crucial step in early ironmaking. Most of the sites in Tamil Nadu where iron has been found are ancient habitation sites near present-day villages. Archaeologists K. Rajan and R. Sivanandam say that excavators have so far explored a small fraction of the more than 3,000 identified Iron Age burial sites, which contain sarcophagi (stone coffins) and a wealth of iron objects. In the process, they have discovered hoes, shovels, spears, knives, arrowheads, chisels, axes, and swords made of iron.

In a tomb excavated at one site, more than 85 iron artifacts – knives, arrowheads, rings, chisels, axes, and swords – were found inside and outside the burial urn. Reliable dating of over 20 key samples by five laboratories worldwide has confirmed their antiquity. Some findings are particularly noteworthy. Osmund Bopearachchi, a historian at the French National Centre for Scientific Research in Paris, highlighted a key find – an iron sword from a burial site, made of ultra-high carbon steel and dating back to the 13th-15th centuries BCE. This advanced steel is a direct evolution of Iron Age metallurgy, requiring sophisticated knowledge and precise high-temperature processes.

“We know that the initial signs of true steel production date back to the 13th century BCE, located in present-day Turkey. Radiometric dating seems to prove that the Tamil Nadu samples are even earlier,” he said. Ms. Roy added that the early steel in Tamil Nadu suggests that the people there "were steel makers, not just users – a technologically advanced community that evolved over time." Furthermore, at a site called Kodumanal, excavators discovered a furnace, suggesting the presence of an advanced iron-smelting community. The furnace area shows white discoloration due to extreme heat. Nearby, excavators found iron slag – some fused with the furnace walls – hinting at advanced metalworking techniques. Clearly, the people at this site were not only using iron but were actively producing and processing it.

To be sure, the Tamil Nadu excavations are not the first discovery of iron in India. Evidence of early iron use has been found at at least 27 sites in eight states, some dating back 4,200 years. "The latest Tamil Nadu excavations push back the date of Indian iron artifacts by 400 years," archaeologist Rajan told me, who co-authored a paper on the subject. "The Iron Age was a technological shift, not a single origin event – it developed independently in multiple places," said Ms. Roy, pointing to early findings in eastern, western, and northern India. "What is now clear," she added, "is that indigenous iron technology developed early in the Indian subcontinent."

Experts say the Tamil Nadu excavations are significant and could change our understanding of the Iron Age and ironmaking in the Indian subcontinent. Furthermore, "these excavations testify to the existence of a distinctly complex style of civilization," noted Nirmala Lakshman, author of "The Tamils – A Portrait of a Community." However, archaeologists caution that there is still a lack of excavation work needed to collect new data from across India. As one expert put it, "Indian archaeology outside of Tamil Nadu is in a state of silence."

Kattarghatta Padayya, a renowned Indian archaeologist, said that this is "just the beginning." "We need to delve deeper into the origins of iron technology – these findings mark the beginning, not the conclusion. The key is to use this as a premise, trace the process, and determine where iron production truly began."