The history of civilization is in many ways linked to the story of the use of metals in antiquity. Although modern metallurgy has seen an exponential growth since the Industrial Revolution it is interesting that many modern concepts in metallurgy have their seeds in ancient practices that pre-date the Industrial Revolution. Metals were extracted and utilized in the past in stages progressing usually from the use of native metal, to those metals which could be smelted easily from ores, to those which were more difficult to smelt. The commonly used metals in antiquity include gold, silver, copper, iron, tin, lead, zinc and mercury. This brief review takes a synoptic look at some aspects of the early use of metal in a global perspective. It throws light on some of the achievements of ancient Indian metallurgists. Its heritage in metallurgy, medicine, mathematics and astronomy is a matter of pride for India. more...

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Greatest Metallurgical Accomplishments

The History of metallurgy in the Indian subcontinent dates back to 1700 BCE. Metals and related concepts were mentioned in various early Vedic age texts. The Rig veda already uses the Sanskrit term Ayas (metal).

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org

See also, Metals & Alloys 

See also,  Timeline of Ancient India (http://www.kamat.com/kalranga/timeline/timeline.htm)