The modern technological advancements witnessed across the globe are a product of concerted efforts from many individuals who have gone through a lot of discoveries to realize their dream. The technological innovations ranging from the roads, skyscrapers, suspension bridges, automotive and other electronic gadgets among others have their origin from the initial efforts where the fire was the primary source of the engineering process. The fire was of vital significance in the smelting process where various metals including iron, silver, gold, mercury, copper, tin and lead among other were purified from their ores in an intricate process to come up with technological items and products. Use of fire in the smelting process is in contrast to modern times where scientists rely on other sources of energy including the nuclear power to advance their technological discoveries. The essay will, however, concentrate on the importance and use of fire in the ancient times by presenting on how its usage brought a revolution in the technological world.
The discovery of fire by early human beings is one of the greatest inventions of all times seeing that almost all of human activities rely heavily on the use of fire. According to Gowlett (2016), people have for the longest time learned how to control and use fire to solve the problems that surround them. Most important to note in this discussion is the ability of first human beings to use power to advance their lives in the field of technology. As people began to become civilized, they learned how to create tools which were essential for their survival. As a result, these early people moved from Stone Age where they would use stone implements as they discovered iron which would serve their needs in a better manner.
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The smelting process which is the extraction a metal from its ore is an essential process in the field of technology. According to Hall (nd), human beings first engaged in the process of smelting metals more than 8000 years ago. The first metals which in the smelting process were copper and bronze which was later followed by the smelting of iron. In the following centuries, humans continued to discover the smelting of more metals including tin, lead, and mercury. This smelting process brought about a great revolution in human civilizations as it brought an overhaul on how things worked in the society. Additionally, the smelting technology can be said to be the one that set the field for the emergence of better technological advancements witnessed today.
The intricate process of smelting metals though it later came to be a significant technological discovery was not an easy feat as the people faced a myriad of challenges. The biggest problem encountered by the pioneers was the ability to achieve very high temperatures to complete the smelting process. The reason for this problem is the fact that there was no existing knowledge as is today considering that there is adequate research in this area. Additionally, the pioneers faced another set of challenge in that they were not aware of the chemicals found in any metal that they smelted which made their work harder. However, these problems did not stop these technological conscious individuals to go ahead and make great leaps in the smelting industry.
The discovery of the smelting industry had a lot of impacts which were either positive or negative. The ultimate move from use of stone to metal implements was made possible by the initial and later use of fire in the fire industry. Countries which learned the art of using fire in the smelting process s found themselves wielding so much power as compared to those nations without this power. An example of such country is Rome which through its discovery of this art was able to control a lot of nations. The process of subduing these nations came after Roman Empire made weapons and arms which strengthened its military powers making it a formidable force to reckon with (Deposits Magazine, 2016). Additionally, this nation made coins which played a significant role in empowering this nation to have a persistent economic growth which helped it to control other countries.
The discovery of the ability of fire to smelt metals came at a price especially when viewed from an environmental perspective. The melting process which required high temperatures led to high instances of air and ground pollution which have remained up to date. According to Zhang (2012), the early Roman smelters used crude methods for smelting copper which ended up producing very pure copper dust which ended in the air and on the soil. Consequently, the copper deposits are present in plants and livestock up to today. One can allude to the fact that the price of technological advancement is high and at one point it cannot be eliminated if the world is to progress technologically.
Romans have a long standing history when it comes to civilization considering that it is among the first nations of the world to come up with technological discoveries. The Roman civilization came to be as a result of the fact that Romans had become quite a formidable military force subduing many nations due to its weaponry attributed to their early adoption of fire in their smelting industry. According to Weisgerber & Willies (2000), mining in Rome was a significant venture since it supported the Roman economy as well as its military in the days it ruled from Africa to England and from Spain to Syria. Consequently through the smelting industry Romans were able to produce armor, coins, and arms from gold, iron, silver, and bronze which spread throughout the nations they had conquered. One can imply that this kind of mass production strengthened the Roman Empire making it a formidable empire which took the world by storm.
The Roman Empire initially set up many smelting centers in various locations to ensure mass production of technological advancements to help in their economic development to maintain its supremacy. According to Deposits Magazine (2016), these smelting centers included Attica in Spain for gold smelting, Devon, and Cornwall in Great Britain for smelting tin among others spread across the Roman Empire. The mining and smelting processes which the Romans themselves did which later the slaves, exiles, and convicts drawn from the various nations they had conquered undertook. The cheap labor provided by these individuals in the smelting industry contributed to the economic growth of the Roman Empire in the early decades making it one of the earliest civilizations.
The Roman Empire made great strides in their smelting industries as they progressed from using pure metals in their smelting industries to more innovations where they used metal alloys instead. The innovations were fuelled by the desire by the professional smelters to make better use of the byproducts of the smelting process as more aristocrats, and ruling class demanded more creativity is creating a market. The demand then forced such professionals to go a notch higher and began using bronze and brass which are alloys of copper as it passes through the smelting process. The early Romans discovered that addition of tin to copper during the smelting process went a long way in hardening the copper mold to produce a tougher and harder metal as a result. In the process, the smelters came up with bronze which was forged and formed into better implements including weapons and coins. Furthermore, the smelters discovered brass by mixing copper with zinc which the Roman used in making coins as it had lighter yellow color as compared to copper (Deposits Magazine, 2016). The innovations go ahead to show that the Romans were determined to use fire in their smelting process to make discoveries which would set the ground work for more changes to follow.
The use of fire in the smelting process by early human beings played a significant role in coming up with various inventions of the beginning of the times which were critical in changing how people viewed life. These designs which focused on making life easier for the concerned populations brought about creative gadgets tools and equipment which formed a basis for the modern technological thought. According to Bowman et al. (2011), some of the significant technological inventions emanating from the use of fire in the smelting industries included the wheel which made transportation easier. Rather than human beings having to rely on animals transport, this invention laid the ground work for the automotive industry which was to improve in the coming centuries. Additionally, the invention of the plow contributed majorly to the development of agriculture which also supported the growth of industrial revolution. It is true to say that smelting made a significant contribution to the growth of several other industries which facilitated the growth of the economies of the countries that tapped the benefits of fire in their smelting practices.
The Iron Age which relied heavily on the use of fire for the smelting process is a significant boost to the technological advancement of the ancient times. The iron smelting industries relied on blast furnaces which were made using fireproof bricks to smelt the iron to create wrought iron (Chowdry, 2014). Later continued discoveries enabled the smelters to begin smelting cast iron which was used to build technological creations such as weapons. The discoveries were a great leap in technological advancements since cast iron which is comparable to steel is very fusible and tough making it a metal of choice for many blacksmiths in medieval times. In this respect, one cannot ignore the role of fire in enhancing technological developments. It would be hard to have reached this far that the world has come if the fire was not part and parcel of technological advancements. Furthermore, it is important to know that fire continues to be an integral part of technological advancements in as much as more people are embracing the use of electrical or nuclear power in their technical processes.
In conclusion, the importance of using fire in ancient technical practices cannot be ignored seeing that it laid the ground work forte technological advancements witnessed across the globe. Most importantly is the significant role that fire played in the achievement of this reality when it came to the smelting industry. The Roman Empire which thrived in medieval periods tapped this knowledge to produce artifacts, arms, coins, and weaponry which made it the greatest empires of all times. Consequently the power and influence it gained through the use of fire to smelt various metals gave it an upper hand over other nations which it brought under its authority. These nations provided cheap labor which in turn led to the creation of different innovations ranging from the wheel, plows among other innovations which formed the basis of modern technology. In this respect, therefore, it is important to note that recent technological advancements which rely on electricity and nuclear power to owe its roots from the use of fire in the smelting process.
References
Bowman, D.M.J.S. et al.(2011). The human dimension of fire regimes on Earth. Journal of Biogeography, 38(12): 2223–2236.
Chowdry, A. (2014). The Ancient Art of Smelting Iron. Wordpress. Retrieved on 15 September 2017 from https://anitachowdry.wordpress.com/2014/07/30/the-ancient-art-of-smelting-iron-in-a-bloomery/
Deposits Magazine (2016). Mining in Ancient Greece and Rome. Retrieved on 15 September 2017 from https://depositsmag.com/2016/07/14/mining-in-ancient-greece-and-rome/
Gowlett, J.A.J. (2016). The discovery of fire by humans: a long and convoluted process. Royal Society Publishing, 371 (1696).
Hall, B. (nd). Medieval Iron and Steel – Simplified. Online Reference Book for Medieval Studies. Retrieved on 15 September 2017 from https://www.arlima.net/the-orb/encyclop/culture/scitech/iron_steel.html
Weisgerber, G. & Wilies, L. (2000). The Use of Fire in Prehistoric and Ancient Mining: Fire Setting. Paleorient, 26(2): 131-149.
Zhang, X. et al. (2012). Impacts of lead/zinc mining and smelting on the environment and human health in China. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment . 184(4):2261-73
