Continued from the previous post
regarding the presence of metallurgy in South America, where archaeologists
claim metallurgy began, and from there traveled northward into Central, Meso-,
and North America. It was also discussed that Andean metallurgists used alloys
almost exclusively to mold their images.
Zacatecas is outside the Mesoamericanists’ map of the Land of Promise
and the only tin deposit in all of Mesoamerica and North America
Tin deposits exist in many parts
of South America, including Peru, with major deposits in Bolivia. These deposits
were exploited early in the manufacture of tin bronze by Andean cultures—bronze
being the first tin alloy used on a
large scale early in BC times.
In North America, the only known
exploitable source of tin during ancient times was located in the Zacatecas tin
province of north central Mexico, which supplied west Mexican cultures with
enough tin for bronze production (Heather Nan Lechtman, “Arsenic bronze: dirty
copper or chosen alloy? A view from the Americas,” Journal of Field
Archaeology, vol.23, Iss.3, 1996, p478).
Tin, of course, was an essential
metal, and necessary to alloy with copper to make bronze. In fact, tin is a
relatively rare element in the earth. As an example: iron is found in 50,000
parts per million in the earth; iron is found in
50,000 parts per million in the earth; carbon (300ppm); nickel (80 ppm); zinc
(75 ppm); copper (100 ppm); lead (14 ppm); arsenic (5 ppm); tin (2 ppm); silver
(0.1 ppm); bismuth (0.048 ppm); and gold (0.005) ppm. These metals were used by
early cultures to amalgam into stronger and more useful metal alloys.
The known
locations of tin deposits exploited and worked during ancient times to extract
tin ore for smelting and alloying
Thus, it should be kept in mind that tin is so rare
in all of North, Meso- and Central America that there were only one (minor) tin
deposit found outside South American ancient times in the entire Western Hemisphere—in
the far north of Mexico, nowhere near the Mesoamericanists’ Land of Promise or
the Heartland/Great Lakes area of their lands of promise. South America, on the other hand, had several minor
tine deposits, and one major deposit exploited ancient in the Andes of Bolivia,
in what would have been the Land Southward of Lehi’s Isle or Land of Promise.
The importance of this, for those who are not
knowledgeable of metallurgy, is that tine was the major alloy discovered
anciently to mix with copper to achieve the much harder alloy of bronze, a
metal used for making weapons and the precursor of the development of iron, and
later steel. While much later zinc was added to copper to create brass for
brightness in jewelry and ornamentation, it was not as strong as bronze and had
little value in weaponry as did bronze.
Initially, of course, copper was discovered, primarily from open deposits found on the ground; however, while copper was quite malleable and could be worked into decorative objects, such as ornamentation, it was too soft and brittle for weapons such as swords, and easily lost is edge becoming little more than a club, and not effective for weapons other than knives. It was the addition of tin, though rarer to find, that made copper (bronze) weapons effective and far more superior. It also provided a much stronger material for more useful items, such as tools and large decorative objects. It was bronze that advanced man’s development for several millennia. In fact, by the time brass was developed, around 500 BC, bronze was already being supplanted by iron and later steel.
Thus, it should be noted, that while Great Lakes theorists love to point out that copper was plentiful in that area, and that metallurgy existed anciently there, they fail to understand or acknowledge that this was not smelting metallurgy where various metals were alloyed for useful and effective metal working. In fact, copper one of the few metals that can occur in nature in a directly usable metallic form, which led to very early human use in several regions, specifically around the Great Lakes in North America.
In fact, since copper was generally just hammered
into shapes, and not melted and cast, which is pouring liquid metal into molds
to achieve desire shape, this Great Lakes metallurgy does not come close to
that mentioned in the scriptural record. IN addition, gold and silver were
almost unknown in that area, and certainly not working in the abundance
mentioned in the Jaredite and Nephite records.
It should also be noted, that it was the discovery of tin as an alloy for copper, and its relative scarceness, that led to the increasing of trade between areas, and the expansion of trade routes—in the Mediterranean, it led to the trade with Britain and Gaul (Brittany) where tin was plentiful.
From the last millennia BC to around 500 AD, ancient Andeans of South America developed methods of smelting, using ovens with temperatures of 1300º-3300º F. to created alloys such as arsenic bronze (copper 1984º/bronze 1742º), tumbaga (1984º), guanín/guanine (680º), caracolí and more. This latter metal is relatively unknown, but evidently an alloy found only in South America, and has never been successfully duplicated anywhere else. It is something the indigenous South Americas knew about and used as ear and pectoral ornaments, resulting in a composition that appears like silver covered over with some inflammable or inflamed substance, resulting in a matchless radiance and brilliance that will not tarnish, even if left in the ground or sea for great lengths. The nearest European jewelers could approach this beautiful metal was by mixing six pars of fine silver, three parts of purified or refined copper, and one part of fine gold—but it was not the same or equal to the Indian caracolí (Barnard Shipp, The Indian and Antiquities of America, Shermn & Co., Philadephia, 1897, p295).
As noted earlier, while tin was extremely rare in North, Meso- and Central America, it was rather plentiful in South America. In fact, according to archaeologist and ancient technologist, Heather Lechtman of M.IT., tin deposits exist in many parts of South America, with minor deposits in southern Peru, Colombia, Ecuador, Brazil and northwestern Argentina, and major deposit of exploitable in northern Bolivia.
Some Artifacts of arsenic bronze, silver, alloys and gold pieces have been found in Andean South America displaying evidence of smelting and alloys, with some of these copper artifacts have air bubbles which indicates casting and smelting.
The early inhabitants of South America recognized platinum and had used it for making ornaments well before the Spanish Conquest. Their techniques and ability in metal working were outstanding, and in this respect, platinum group metals as small inclusions in the goldwork from many parts of the Ancient World is well-known, specifically in Andean South America.
In this, it should be noted that the Andean
mountains provide a rich source of many minerals and metals. Platinum is found
associated with ultrabasic rocks such as pyroxenes, peridotites and dunites
along the seaward flanks of the western cordillera. The erosion of these rocks
and fluvial transport result in alluvial deposits of platiniferous sands and
gravels. The most important area in which these deposits are exploited is that
of the coastal area of Colombia and Ecuador. Although some of the platinum
nuggets can be quite substantial—a specimen from the Chocó area in Colombia,
now in the Royal Museum of Madrid weighed nearly 25 ounces (David A. Scott,
“Ancient Platinum Technology in South America,” Technology Review, Institute of
Archaeology, University of London; Platinum Metals Review, vol.24, 1980, p147; John
Henry Heuland, “On a Mass of Platinum at Madrid,” Annual Philosophical Journal, vol.12, 1818, pp200–201).
In fact, natives of Ecuador discovered a method to work platinum (a metal difficult to melt) into objects, they invented what is known as "Sintering," a process of compacting and forming a solid mass of material by heat or pressure without melting it to the point of liquefaction—which was mixing granules of silver with platinum to lower the melting point of platinum, which is 3218º F. They used platinum to create jewelry and as an ingredient in alloys used to hardened tools and ornaments. It should also be understood that the Spanish learned how to melt platinum from the native Americans in Andean South America. These indigenous Andean metallurgists also invented electroplating, a chemical process they used to gild copper and alloys that they made from silver, copper and gold. The Moche, who lived on the coast of northern Peru, invented this process between 200 BC and 500 AD.
One thing that is irrefutable is that all serious metallurgists, historians and archaeologists agree that metallurgy (the smelting of ore to obtain metals) began in Andean South America long before it was found in Mesoamerica, and long before it was used in the Heartland or Great Lakes area of North America, none of which other than Ecuador and Peru, were smelting ores until long after the Nephite era ended.
(See the next post, “Metallurgy in the Americas – Part VIII,” regarding the fact that almost all metallurgists claim that metallurgy developed and began in South America and from there traveled northward into Central, Meso-, and North America)
Initially, of course, copper was discovered, primarily from open deposits found on the ground; however, while copper was quite malleable and could be worked into decorative objects, such as ornamentation, it was too soft and brittle for weapons such as swords, and easily lost is edge becoming little more than a club, and not effective for weapons other than knives. It was the addition of tin, though rarer to find, that made copper (bronze) weapons effective and far more superior. It also provided a much stronger material for more useful items, such as tools and large decorative objects. It was bronze that advanced man’s development for several millennia. In fact, by the time brass was developed, around 500 BC, bronze was already being supplanted by iron and later steel.
Thus, it should be noted, that while Great Lakes theorists love to point out that copper was plentiful in that area, and that metallurgy existed anciently there, they fail to understand or acknowledge that this was not smelting metallurgy where various metals were alloyed for useful and effective metal working. In fact, copper one of the few metals that can occur in nature in a directly usable metallic form, which led to very early human use in several regions, specifically around the Great Lakes in North America.
A piece of native
copper found on the ground in Keweenaw Peninsula, Michigan where an Iroquois
Copper Mine once existed
It should also be noted, that it was the discovery of tin as an alloy for copper, and its relative scarceness, that led to the increasing of trade between areas, and the expansion of trade routes—in the Mediterranean, it led to the trade with Britain and Gaul (Brittany) where tin was plentiful.
From the last millennia BC to around 500 AD, ancient Andeans of South America developed methods of smelting, using ovens with temperatures of 1300º-3300º F. to created alloys such as arsenic bronze (copper 1984º/bronze 1742º), tumbaga (1984º), guanín/guanine (680º), caracolí and more. This latter metal is relatively unknown, but evidently an alloy found only in South America, and has never been successfully duplicated anywhere else. It is something the indigenous South Americas knew about and used as ear and pectoral ornaments, resulting in a composition that appears like silver covered over with some inflammable or inflamed substance, resulting in a matchless radiance and brilliance that will not tarnish, even if left in the ground or sea for great lengths. The nearest European jewelers could approach this beautiful metal was by mixing six pars of fine silver, three parts of purified or refined copper, and one part of fine gold—but it was not the same or equal to the Indian caracolí (Barnard Shipp, The Indian and Antiquities of America, Shermn & Co., Philadephia, 1897, p295).
As noted earlier, while tin was extremely rare in North, Meso- and Central America, it was rather plentiful in South America. In fact, according to archaeologist and ancient technologist, Heather Lechtman of M.IT., tin deposits exist in many parts of South America, with minor deposits in southern Peru, Colombia, Ecuador, Brazil and northwestern Argentina, and major deposit of exploitable in northern Bolivia.
Some Artifacts of arsenic bronze, silver, alloys and gold pieces have been found in Andean South America displaying evidence of smelting and alloys, with some of these copper artifacts have air bubbles which indicates casting and smelting.
The early inhabitants of South America recognized platinum and had used it for making ornaments well before the Spanish Conquest. Their techniques and ability in metal working were outstanding, and in this respect, platinum group metals as small inclusions in the goldwork from many parts of the Ancient World is well-known, specifically in Andean South America.
In fact, natives of Ecuador discovered a method to work platinum (a metal difficult to melt) into objects, they invented what is known as "Sintering," a process of compacting and forming a solid mass of material by heat or pressure without melting it to the point of liquefaction—which was mixing granules of silver with platinum to lower the melting point of platinum, which is 3218º F. They used platinum to create jewelry and as an ingredient in alloys used to hardened tools and ornaments. It should also be understood that the Spanish learned how to melt platinum from the native Americans in Andean South America. These indigenous Andean metallurgists also invented electroplating, a chemical process they used to gild copper and alloys that they made from silver, copper and gold. The Moche, who lived on the coast of northern Peru, invented this process between 200 BC and 500 AD.
One thing that is irrefutable is that all serious metallurgists, historians and archaeologists agree that metallurgy (the smelting of ore to obtain metals) began in Andean South America long before it was found in Mesoamerica, and long before it was used in the Heartland or Great Lakes area of North America, none of which other than Ecuador and Peru, were smelting ores until long after the Nephite era ended.
(See the next post, “Metallurgy in the Americas – Part VIII,” regarding the fact that almost all metallurgists claim that metallurgy developed and began in South America and from there traveled northward into Central, Meso-, and North America)
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