Metallurgy, Materials & Chemistry

Sivagalai: claimed 4th-millennium-BCE iron

claimed 3345-2953 BCEIron Age Tamil communities (claimed)Sivagalai burial urns (Tamil Nadu)Tamil Nadu

3,345 BCE

AMS and OSL dates from charcoal and pottery found with iron objects in urn burials were reported at up to 3345 BCE.

Dated: 3,345–2,953 BCE
As scholars put it: claimed 3345-2953 BCE
Originator: Iron Age Tamil communities (claimed)
Source text: Sivagalai burial urns (Tamil Nadu)
Region: Tamil Nadu
Discipline: Metallurgy, Materials & Chemistry
Evidence: Plausible precursor
Confidence: Low
Verification: Verified-web

Meanwhile in the West

Would predate Anatolian (Hittite-era) iron by two millennia.

Fair to say

The dates come from associated charcoal and ceramics rather than the iron itself, in a state-government report; independent peer-reviewed confirmation is still awaited and many archaeologists urge caution.

Path to modern innovation

If confirmed, it would rewrite the global history of iron.

Transmission

Released by the Tamil Nadu State Department of Archaeology, January 2025.

References

1K. Rajan & R. Sivanantham, 'Antiquity of Iron' (TNSDA, 2025)