Iron production and the Kingdom of Kush: an introduction to UCL Qatar’s research in Sudan Jane Humphris & Thilo Rehren The remains of extensive iron industries form prominent features at key locations within the Meroitic landscape, demonstrating the significance of iron production within the history of this period of the Kingdom of Kush. The scale of Meroitic iron production combined with early insights into technological approaches led to the iron industries being of particular interest to archaeometallurgists, while preliminary radiocarbon dates secured a prominent place for Meroe within debates concerning the origins of iron in Africa. However, when considering the extent of production, the potential time period involved and its wider significance within a Pan-African debate, it can be said that our knowledge to date of this fundamental Meroitic industry is notably superficial. This paper introduces UCL Qatar’s research in Sudan, which, amongst other things, aims to generate new data that will answer some of the many questions concerning Meroitic iron production. It is hoped that our results will eventually allow the industries and people involved to be placed within the Meroitic context, thus revealing their contribution to the rise, dominance and fall of the Kingdom of Kush. Introduction: why iron? A central theme in the study of technology is the embedded nature of technical practices within broa- der social and cultural contexts. It is widely recog- nised that every stage of any technological process, or chaîne opératoire, represents the choices made by artisans, influenced by numerous variables including the availability of resources, preferences of the con- sumers, and the knowledge systems held within the community. 1 As such, technological practices reflect the artisans’ position within society and the way in which they perceive the world around them, as well as the societies themselves. For the archaeologist, the identification and detailed understanding of a con- textualised technology provides an invaluable and unique window into past society, complementing the focus on elite and consumer evidence that dominates much of traditional archaeology. Perhaps more than any other ancient technology, iron production generated a significant quantity and diversity of remains that survive in the archaeological record. These remains can be subjected to a range of macroscopic, microscopic and chemical analyses, the results of which allow for the reconstruction of various fundamental aspects of the original techno- logical sequences including operational parameters, ingredients and technological styles. 2 This informa- 1 For example Akinjogbin 2004, 61; Collett 1993, 508-511; Dobres & Hoffman 1994, 211; Rowlands & Warnier 1993, 522-543. 2 For example Fluzin 2004; Tylecote 1992. tion provides an insight into various aspects of past technological systems, and, when placed within a broader historical and cultural context, may in turn offer an insight into the past social, political, eco- nomic, environmental and ritual landscapes within which iron production was embedded. With the adoption of iron production by society, a specialised and particularly resource and labour- thirsty technology joined the local craft scene, pro- ducing a valuable material with properties “far in advance” of anything that had gone before. 3 Despite the technical skill, effort and materials required to produce iron, this production was viable and in some cases became of paramount importance to society, because it provided a material that could be worked to produce tough, durable objects as well as ornamen- tal and prestige items suitable for local consumption and for external trade. 4 From rings, pins, bracelets and bells, to hoes and axes, to spears and arrowheads, the malleability of heated iron meant that a smelted bloom could be easily forged and shaped into desired objects with good tensile strength. Thus, the practical significance of iron lay in the vast array of objects that could be produced, as well as the superior mechanical properties of these objects. It is reasonable to suggest that the early use of this new and rare material would have been generally confined to high-status goods produced by a prestige technology. 5 Initially the effects of this metal on 3 Craddock 1995, 234. 4 Delmonte 1985, 238; Gale 1969, 2-5. 5 Pleiner 2000, 23-30. In: A. Lohwasser & P. Wolf (Hrsg): Ein Forscherleben zwischen den Welten. Sonderheft MittSAG, Berlin 2014