The innovation of iron and the Xiongnu – a case study from Central Mongolia

Abstract

This article presents the oldest iron smelting furnaces of the Xiongnu Empire period in central Mongolia and argues that a significant smelting center existed at the site of Baga Nariĭn Am. Five iron smelting furnaces and four smelting installations were excavated, with a total 26 furnaces further identified through SQUID magnetometry. In combination with a review of data on iron production in contemporary Mongolia, the Transbaikal region, Tuva, the Minusinsk Basin and the Altai, we argue that this new data alters existing narratives of the adoption of iron in eastern Eurasia. While iron smelting as such was adopted from the Minusinsk Basin, where the oldest iron smelting furnaces in eastern Eurasia are currently found, we suggest that the driving force behind the massive boom in iron metallurgy from the second century BCE onward was the Xiongnu Empire. During the course of the Xiongnu Empire, the development of more efficient iron technology is evident, with the steppe empire also inventing a new furnace type. These findings are significant for understanding the dynamics of iron industries in the eastern Eurasian Steppe and paves the way for necessary work on metallurgical installations in the Minusinsk Basin and Tuva.