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the status of scientific knowledge of the indigenous manu-
facturers. The literary evidences tell us about the state-
of-art and the status of concepts and philosophy.
Even
though the literary evidences on minerals and metals in the
Indian scene are scanty, scattered and occasionally of un-
certain date, these must be viewed as complementary to the
archaeological evidences.
The Rgveda describes the transition from the
neolithic to the chalcolithic period in the Indian history
(earlier than second millennium B.C.), the use of conch-shell
and conch-pearl, different ill-defined metals, and widespread
trade and navigation. Homer referred to the import of tin and
ivory from India.
The post-Rgvedic literatures describe purification.
steps, sieving, winnowing, smelting in furnaces using bellows
and different kinds of metals
-
the ornamental and barter meta
of gold and silver, low melting point metals lead and tin,
copper and the new metal syama or iron obtained through solid
state carbothermic reduction. The art of forging or joining
of metals was mentioned.
archaeological
The problem of correlating archaeological and liter-
ary evidences is distinctly severe with the Rgveda and the
epic Mahabharata. The epic was definitely expanded from time
to time, and the references to ant-gold, marakata or emerald
and gem-incrustations must have been later-day insertions. We
cannot accept that marakata was known to the residents of
1200 B.C. Hastinapura.