Metallurgy, Materials & Chemistry
Lost-wax (cire perdue) bronze casting
from Indus era onwardIndian metal-castersDancing Girl (Mohenjo-daro); Chola bronzesTamil Nadu
2,600 BCE
Sophisticated lost-wax casting of bronze figures, from the Indus 'Dancing Girl' to the Chola Nataraja.
- Dated
- 2,600–1,900 BCE
- As scholars put it
- from Indus era onward
- Originator
- Indian metal-casters
- Source text
- Dancing Girl (Mohenjo-daro); Chola bronzes
- Region
- Tamil Nadu
- Discipline
- Metallurgy, Materials & Chemistry
- Evidence
- Documented
- Confidence
- High
- Verification
- Reference-cited
Meanwhile in the West
The technique is worldwide; Indian mastery is notable.
Fair to say
Lost-wax casting was independently practised in many cultures.
Path to modern innovation
Foundational metal-casting method still used today.
2,600 BCELost-wax (cire perdue) bronze casting
901 CE
1600Transmission
A shared ancient technique with distinguished Indian examples.
References
- 1Art-historical studies of Chola bronzes
Further reading
Corrections and additional sources: edit IND-047 on GitHub.