Iron Age

History has seen magnificent transitions and with changing prehistoric times period and division. The three technological and cultural stages in prehistoric times have followed the Stone Age, Bronze Age and Iron Age. The collapse of the Bronze Age gave way to the Iron Age in the 1200 BC. During the Iron Age, bronze tools were replaced with iron tools. The use of iron as a tool started in the Middle East and South-Eastern Europe around 1200 BC. However, gradually it expanded to other parts of the world through increasing knowledge of metallurgy and iron objects. It was the beginning of the revolutionising industrial age.

Rise of Iron Age and its history

Although the Iron Age started in the Middle East in the 12th century BC, its actual use started 300 years before with the Hittites, an empire located in present-day Turkey. As the technology gained predominance in the Middle East, it further spread to Central Asia, Eastern Europe, and Central Europe. The Iron Age Technology was about producing tools and weapons manufactured using ferrous metallurgy. Due to the development of weapons from iron, many settlements were under attack, and there were a lot of invasions around the same period.

Check out the complete UPSC Syllabus

Understanding the sequence of the Stone Age, Bronze Age, Iron Age

The prehistoric times in terms of technology is divided into three ages which are :

• Stone Age – The old Stone Age was divided into Paleolithic and Mesolithic ages, where during the former, the humans were hunter-gatherers while the latter were mostly cultivators. The new Stone Age called the Neolithic was when humans started proper agriculture
• Bronze Age – The Bronze Age comes after the stone, which indicates the development of smelting, which is extracting metal from ore. The technology first developed in Southwest Asia. The age started with the development of bronze tools and weapons
• Iron Age – It was the final stage of the Stone Age Bronze Age Iron Age, which transitioned from bronze to iron tools and weapons. The start of the iron age led to a revolution and an increase in both agricultural practices and warfare.

Visit to know more about UPSC Exam Pattern

Chronological Expansion of the Iron Age 

• The Iron Age in the Ancient Near East is known to have started with iron smelting techniques in Anatolia or Caucasus and Balkans around 1300 BC. Earlier iron artefacts from the 9th century are found in Iran
• The initial use of iron for West Asia in regions of Mesopotamian States started from 3000 BC. A dagger is known as one of the earliest iron tools from 2500 BC
• The third intermediate period of Egypt is when the Iron Age started in Egypt. The Black Pyramid of Abusir, dating before 2000BC in Egypt, was found to have pieces of iron. The 13th century BC Tutankhamun’s Tomb consists of a dagger with an iron blade
• The Iron Age is the last prehistoric stage in Europe and the beginning of the protohistoric period. Europe was introduced to iron in the late 11th century BC from the Caucasus. Iron started replacing bronze and was an effective material for making tools and weapons
• In Central Asia, the Iron Age started from the 10th to 7th century BC with its use among Indo-European Saka, China, in the present day. Iron metallurgy reached the Yangtze Valley in East Asia by the 6th century BC
• In Japan, iron weapons, tools, and decorative items are known to enter during the late Yayoi Period predominantly in the form of pottery
• In India, iron artefacts dating between 2, 400 BC and 1800 BC were found in Telangana. The Iron Age in India started before the 3rd century BC between 1800 – 1200 BC. The Indian Mauryan Empire has erected monuments with metallurgy work
• In Sub-Saharan Africa, the Iron Age Bronze Age existed, but there was an absence of the Bronze Age. Many places in Africa have directly transitioned from stone to iron tools skipping the bronze tool altogether

Also read about How to Prepare for UPSC without Coaching

How the Iron Age Changes Things? 

As the Iron Age and Bronze Age transitioned, a lot of changes took place around the world. With the collapse of the Bronze Age and the beginning of the Iron Age, there was a change in agriculture which even led to many wars and invasions. Iron brought an industrial revolution, and it helped Britain become one of the superior industrial powers. The farming tools made from iron made agriculture easier and allowed farmers to use tougher soil and grow more crops. Iron became an important part of factories and machinery and powered the onset of the industrial revolution.

Conclusion 

The article provides comprehensive information on the pre-historical technological era and describes the last of the epoch called the Iron Age. It provides a chronological order of when the use of iron for making tools and weapons started and its gradual expansion across the world. As per the documents, the use of iron started with Hittites, an empire in modern-day Turkey before the beginning of the actual Iron Age. However, the beginning of the use of iron helped develop better tools and weapons, which improved agricultural practices and led to an increase in war.