Abstract
The aim of this paper is to analyse the role of the metalworker in the northwest Iberian Iron Age. By adopting a holistic and diachronic perspective, a broad review of the influence of metalworking and its agents on the social structuring of the communities of the Atlantic seaboard is presented. With the aim of exploring the implications of metallurgy and the blacksmith's activity, a new perspective of metalworking is suggested. Thus, an exploration of perspectives beyond the technical aspects will be addressed, considering the ‘technological dimension’ as part of all the elements that define this activity. The objective of the work is to present a narrative that allows analysis of the role of the metalworker throughout different historical periods, focusing on the social, technical and symbolic dynamics that have shaped its development.
Highlights
The aim of this paper is to analyse the role of the metalworker in the northwest Iberian Iron Age
The goal is not to analyse only the ‘technological dimension’ of this activity, but rather how metallurgy and its interactions with other forms of expressions helped shape the social ethos of a community
It is true that the difficulties in drawing lines between materiality, symbolism and the imaginary make this kind of approach demanding
Summary
Raw materials technical and social and symbolic aspects (Pfaffenberger 1988, 236). As has been already pointed out, metallurgical activity by itself does not allow us to define or understand any kind of society, but its relation to other social and cultural expressions must be considered to understand its influence Despite this remarkable stabilization of social inequality, the position of the blacksmith seems to symbolize a significant change from earlier periods. Metallurgy, far from our industrialized vision, would be codified through different symbolic and esoteric elements, a fundamental and inseparable aspect of metalworking (Budd & Taylor 1995; Childs 1999; Hingley 2009) This kind of knowledge implies that individuals who preserve that knowledge know how to craft metal, and mediate in conflicts and sanction activities that affect the production process. By identifying this heterogeneity in social ethos and political identity, which has only recently begun to be addressed (González Álvarez 2011; González-Ruibal 2012; Parcero-Oubiña & Nión-Álvarez 2021), will it be possible to identify the role and influence of different collectives such as metalworkers
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