[meteorite-list] Nickel-iron meteorite used to make 5, 000 year old Egyptian beads
Martin Altmann
altmann at meteorite-martin.de
Thu May 30 06:03:28 EDT 2013
Hi Robin,
only short remark,
that the iron beads from the Gerzeh tombs are of meteoritic origin (due to their high Ni-content),
was already stated in 1932 by Gerald Wainwright.
Also Buchwald 1975 seems to have them.
Best!
Martin
-----Ursprüngliche Nachricht-----
Von: meteorite-list-bounces at meteoritecentral.com [mailto:meteorite-list-bounces at meteoritecentral.com] Im Auftrag von Robin Whittle
Gesendet: Donnerstag, 30. Mai 2013 06:11
An: METEORITE LIST
Betreff: [meteorite-list] Nickel-iron meteorite used to make 5, 000 year old Egyptian beads
The article:
http://www.nature.com/news/iron-in-egyptian-relics-came-from-space-1.13091
reports on an article behind a paywall:
Analysis of a prehistoric Egyptian iron bead with implications for
the use and perception of meteorite iron in ancient Egypt
Diane Johnson, Joyce Tyldesley, Tristan Lowe, Philip J. Withers,
Monica M. Grady.
Meteoritics & Planetary Science online: 20 May 2013
DOI: 10.1111/maps.12120
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/maps.12120/abstract
Abstract:
Tube-shaped beads excavated from grave pits at the prehistoric
Gerzeh cemetery, approximately 3300 BCE, represent the earliest
known use of iron in Egypt. Using a combination of scanning
electron microscopy and micro X-ray microcomputer tomography, we
show that microstructural and chemical analysis of a Gerzeh iron
bead is consistent with a cold-worked iron meteorite. Thin
fragments of parallel bands of taenite within a meteoritic
Widmanstätten pattern are present, with structural distortion
caused by cold-working. The metal fragments retain their original
chemistry of approximately 30 wt% nickel. The bulk of the bead is
highly oxidized, with only approximately 2.4% of the total bead
volume remaining as metal. Our results show that the first known
example of the use of iron in Egypt was produced from a meteorite,
its celestial origin having implications for both the perception of
meteorite iron by ancient Egyptians and the development of
metallurgical knowledge in the Nile Valley.
The Nature write-up includes a quote from a museum creator that "during the time of the Pharaohs, the gods were believed to have bones made of iron".
- Robin
______________________________________________
Visit the Archives at http://www.meteorite-list-archives.com
Meteorite-list mailing list
Meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
More information about the Meteorite-list
mailing list