Dispelling Some Myths: Chinese Ironworking

Hosted by the actor Danny Trejo, the US television series 'Man at Arms: Art of War', brought together martial arts experts and master blacksmiths to recreate some of the most popular weapons from movies, television shows and video games. The show is clearly intended to be entertaining, hence the graphic demonstrations of the featured weapons’ capabilities. Moreover, the addition of master blacksmiths to recreate the weapons provided useful insights into how they might have been forged. All good. Yet, at its heart this is supposed to be a factual documentary so, as keen historians, we are always alert to any claims made that seem, well, misleading.

Bold assertions  Episode One of Season One, titled 'The Weapons of Kung Fu', focused on two ancient Chinese weapons, namely the 'Wind and Fire Blade' and the ji, a polearm. In the introductory sequence, in the so-called 'War Room', publisher of Kung Fu Tai Chi magazine, Gene Cheng, stated: 'China was way ahead of the rest of the world when it came to metallurgy.'

Blacksmith Kerry Stagmer, of Baltimore Knife and Sword, agreed: 'They were certainly mass-producing weapons in iron far ahead of anybody else. When so many other countries were struggling with just figuring out how to make it [iron] in the first place they were mass-producing. They were mass-producing weapons for armies with thousands of people in it. A big advancement over bronze.'

These are bold claims that, at best, are not entirely the truth. From the moment China's economic 'Open Door Policy' shifted to encouraging and supporting foreign trade and investment, starting on its path to becoming 'The World's Factory', access to and the study of Chinese history by western academics was notably improved. Consequently, documentary makers had a wealth of exciting new material to explore and broadcast to audiences in the West. This resulted in several factual TV documentaries revealing ancient Chinese technology in which it was enthusiastically asserted that China was far more advanced than the rest of the world. Understandably, given the premise of these documentaries, the focus on Chinese technological 'firsts' effectively ignored contemporary or competing innovations outside China to create a somewhat biased view. Such unbalanced and misleading claims are so frustrating, especially when one actually compares Chinese and European historical achievements. So, when it comes to the history of iron working, were the Chinese as advanced as the 'Man at Arms: Art of War' show implied?

The Iron Age  In a subsequent piece to camera Cheng stated: 'China actually has the oldest metallurgy. They moved out of the Bronze Age into the Iron Age around about the Spring and Autumn period, some 3,500 years ago.' Not quite. The Spring and Autumn period [1], which roughly corresponds to the first half of the Eastern Zhou period, was from approximately 771 BC to 476 BC. At its earliest, therefore, it was about 2,800 years ago. Cheng effectively introduced a not unsubstantial error of nearly 700 years; still '3,500 years ago' does sound more impressive.

Leaving the pedantry aside, the Iron Age is conventionally defined by the widespread replacement of bronze weapons and tools with those of iron and steel [2]. That transition happened at different times in different places, as the technology spread. Mesopotamia was fully into the Iron Age by 900 BC. Although Egypt produced iron artefacts, bronze remained dominant until its conquest by Assyria in 663 BC. The Iron Age began in India about 1200 BC, in Central Europe about 600 BC and 300 years later in China (ca. 300 BC) [3]. This means China was somewhat behind in adopting iron, and it is still debated whether the technology of bloomery-based ironworking ever spread from the Middle East to China. Rather, in an example of 'simultaneous invention' [4], it is just possible that Chinese ironworking developed independently.

Cast iron  Returning to the show, Cheng then stated: 'The Chinese were the first to create cast iron. Now cast iron is a stepping-stone to steel, and the Han Dynasty, which is about the time of Christ, developed massive blast furnaces that could raise the temperature of cast iron hot enough to start creating steel. And that was centuries before any other culture developed it.' Once more Cheng’s claims are confusing both on the timing of these developments and his implication that the advance from cast iron to steel was a simple step achieved in a short period. The history of Chinese metallurgy is neither simple nor as unique and ground-breaking as the show would have us believe.

The earliest cast iron artefacts, dating to 5th-century BC, were discovered by archaeologists in what is now modern Luhe County, Jiangsu in China. Compare that date with the introduction of iron working to Greece in the 10th-century BC (see InfoBox right) and one begins to see that Cheng’s claim that China’s iron industry was 'centuries [ahead] of any other culture' does not stand up to scrutiny. That said, around 500 BC metalworkers in the southern state of Wu achieved a temperature of up to 1130 °C which is hot enough to use a hearth as a blast furnace. At this temperature, iron combines with 4.3% carbon, melts and in its liquid state it can be cast in moulds. This method of manufacturing objects is far less laborious than individually forging each piece of iron from a bloom as would have been the case in Iron Age Europe.

According to Wagner (1993) cast iron was subsequently used in ancient China for warfare, agriculture and architecture [5]. The claim regarding its use in warfare is surprising, and debatable, since cast iron is rather brittle and unsuitable for striking implements. It is far more likely, therefore, that cast iron was largely employed for non-military uses, for example by Chinese farmers.

If iron ores are heated with carbon to between 1150°C and 1200°C, a molten alloy of about 96.5% iron and 3.5% carbon is formed. This product is strong, can be cast into intricate shapes, but is too brittle to be worked. If, however, cast iron is heated in air for several days it is decarburized to remove most of the carbon to become wrought iron or a form of steel. The process is time and resource (fuel) consuming so the vast majority of Chinese iron manufacture, from the late Zhou Dynasty [9] onward, was of cast iron [5].

Toward the end of the Zhou Dynasty iron working methods spread northward. By 300 BC, about 150 years after the La Tène culture first appeared in Europe, iron became the material of choice throughout China for most tools and weapons. A mass grave in Hebei province, for example, dated to the early 3rd-century BC, contains several soldiers buried with their weapons and other equipment. The artefacts recovered from this grave are variously made of wrought iron, cast iron, malleable cast iron, and quench-hardened steel, with only a few, probably ornamental, bronze weapons.

Having been rather dismissive of the show’s claims it is worth noting that Cheng was correct when he said 'massive blast furnaces' were developed during the Han Dynasty (206 BC to AD 220). The government of the period established ironworking as a state monopoly and built a series of large blast furnaces in Henan province, each capable of producing several tons of iron per day. By this time, the 1st-century BC, Chinese metallurgists had discovered how to refine molten pig iron. By stirring it in the open air until decarburized it could be hammered to produce 'wrought' iron, or an early form of steel [10]. In modern Mandarin-Chinese, this process is now called chao, literally 'stir-frying', while pig iron is known, in translation, as 'raw iron' and wrought iron is known as 'cooked iron'.

Contrary to the assertions of this episode of 'Man at Arms: Art of War', one final example may be valuable. According to Needham (1986), the production methods of creating a form of high-carbon steel known as Wootz was an idea imported from India to China by merchants no earlier than the 5th-century AD [11]. So, the Chinese were no more innovative in iron making than many other cultures across the globe. This is not to dismiss China's ironworking methods, innovations or practical applications, but merely a reminder to place the country's achievements in a wider, world context.

Endnotes:

1. The period's name derives from the Spring and Autumn Annals, a chronicle of the state of Lu between 722 and 479 BC, which tradition associates with Confucius (551 - 479 BC).
2. Williams, D., (1867), "The Iron Age", Iron Age [weekly journal], New York.
3. Tylecote, R.F., (1992), A History of Metallurgy, Second Edition, Maney Publishing [for the Institute of Materials], London.
4. The concept of 'simultaneous invention' (more popularly known as 'multiple discovery') is the hypothesis that most scientific discoveries and inventions are made independently and more or less simultaneously by multiple scientists and inventors. As an example, stepped pyramids have been built by ancient peoples in South America, Egypt and Asia. It is probably safe to say that these people never met being separated by time and distance. What they share, however, is the ability to come up with similar solutions to similar problems independently (and all without 'Alien' involvement).
5. Wagner, D.B., (1993), Iron and Steel in Ancient China, BRILL, p. 408.
6. Riederer, J., & Wartke, R-B., (2009), "Iron", Brill's New Pauly: Cancik, H., Schneider, H. (eds.).
7. “Noric steel” is named for its place of origin, namely Noricum, an Iron Age kingdom located in modern Austria and Slovenia.
8. Craddock, P.T., (2008), "Mining and Metallurgy", in: Oleson, J.P. (ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Engineering and Technology in the Classical World, Oxford University Press.
9. The Zhou Dynasty (1046 BC to 256 BC) followed the Shang Dynasty (1600 BC to 1046 BC) and preceded the Qin Dynasty (221 BC to 206 BC). It lasted longer than any other dynasty in Chinese history (790 years).
10. Needham, J., (1986), Science and Civilization in China: Volume 4, Part 3, pp. 197, 277 and 563.
11. Needham, J., (1986), Science and Civilization in China: Volume 4, Part 1, p. 282.

Cury or Curry?

During a recent cookery demonstration at Berkhamsted Castle we were chatting to some visitors about the background and history of the recipes we had prepared (which, if you are interested, can be found here). The dishes had all been derived from The Forme of Cury ('The Method of Cooking'), an extensive 14th-century collection of English recipes, the original manuscript for which has been lost. Fortunately, however, the text of this historically significant cookery book can be recreated with some confidence because it was incorporated in nine other manuscripts. The most famous of the latter is a scroll with a headnote citing it as the work of 'the chief Master Cooks of King Richard II'. Some pedigree.

At this point one of the visitors noted the similarity of the Middle English [1] word 'cury' with the modern word 'curry' that describes much of Asian cuisine. The similarities in spelling and pronunciation of both words raised the question as to whether they share an origin. We thought it unlikely as contact and the exchange of ideas and language between 15th-century England and the Indian subcontinent was some 300 years in the future. Yet we could not be certain and thus promised to check. This is what we discovered.

Firstly, 'cury' is simply the Anglicised form of the Middle French [2] word cuire: 'to cook'. Whereas 'curry' was adopted and Anglicised from the Tamil word kari (கறி) meaning 'sauce'. This is usually understood to mean vegetables and/or meat cooked with spices with or without a gravy [3]. As to a linguistic connection, it is theorised that kari was first encountered in the mid 17th-century by members of the British East India Company while trading with Tamil merchants along the Coromandel Coast of southeast India [4]. Here, the British became familiar with 'a spice blend used for making kari dishes...called kari podi or curry powder' [3].

So, despite the outward similarities the two words 'cury' and 'curry' do not share an origin. Both words are clearly separated by both time and space.

Endnotes:
1. Middle English (ME) was a form of the English language spoken after the Norman conquest in 1066 until the late 15th-century.
2. The style of French spoken in the 14th- to the 16th-century and overlapping somewhat with ME.
3. Curry - Etymology (liquisearch.com)
4. Specifically at Fort St. George which was later called Madras and more recently renamed Chennai in 1996.

A Brief History of Foods: Lemons

The Lemon (Citrus limon) is a species of small evergreen tree in the flowering plant family Rutaceae. Believed to be native to South Asia, the true home of the lemon is unknown, although some have linked it to Northeast India (Assam). The Citron (Citrus medica) was the first of the family of citrus fruit to reach the Mediterranean [1]. The Citron spread West probably through Persia, where remains of a Citron were found in a 2,500-year-old Persian garden near Jerusalem, and through the Southern Levant (modern Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, southern Syria and Cyprus). During the 3rd- and 2nd-centuries BC, it spread to the western Mediterranean.

The earliest Citron remains found in a Roman context were discovered in Rome's Forum dating between the late 1st-century BC and the early 1st-century AD. Citron seeds and pollen were also found in gardens owned by the wealthy in Rome and the area around Mount Vesuvius. It took another 400 years for the lemon (Citrus limon) to reach the Mediterranean area and is supposed to have been introduced into southern Italy in AD 200. Citrons and lemons were not widely cultivated nor it seems did the Romans use lemons in cooking. However, it does seem that the wealthy Roman elite prized the trees for their decorative appeal in gardens, pleasant odour, healing qualities, symbolic use and rarity.

Around AD 700 Citrus limon trees were being cultivated in Persia, Iraq and Egypt [2][3], but it was not until the 10th-century that the lemon was first recorded in literature in an Arabic treatise on farming. Like the Romans lemon trees were also used as an ornamental plant in early Islamic gardens. Between AD 1000 and 1150 Arab traders distributed the lemon round the Mediterranean region [4], and the first substantial cultivation of lemons in Europe began in Genoa in the middle of the 15th-century. The lemon was later introduced to the Americas in 1493 when Christopher Columbus carried lemon seeds to Hispaniola. Subsequently, the Spanish conquest throughout the New World helped spread lemon seeds further still. Eventually, they were being grown in California in the years 1751-1768, and increasingly planted in Florida and California during the 19th-century.

The ellipsoidal yellow fruit of the lemon tree was initially used as an ornamental plant and in medicine [2]. It was, for example, prized for its medicinal virtues in the palace of the Sultan of Egypt and Syria in the years between 1174 and 1193. Scroll forward to the 18th-century and scurvy [5] was increasingly becoming a problem for the health of sailors on long sea voyages where they had limited access to fresh fruit. Although the connection between the disease and vitamin C was not fully understood, Scottish doctor, James Lind FRSE FRCPE (4 October 1716 – 13 July 1794), developed the theory that citrus fruits cured scurvy. A pioneer of naval hygiene in the Royal Navy, Lind conducted one of the first ever clinical trials on seamen suffering from scurvy to show the addition of lemon juice to their diets had a positive benefit to health.

Today lemons are used throughout the world for both culinary and non-culinary purposes. Although the pulp and rind are used in cooking and baking, it is the lemon's juice that is used for primarily both for culinary and cleaning purposes [2]. The juice is about 5% to 6% citric acid, with a pH of around 2.2, which gives a distinctively sour taste and makes it a key ingredient in drinks and foods.

An ingredient in lemonade, soft drinks, and cocktails, lemon juice is also used in marinades for fish where it neutralizes amino acids to delay the onset of decay. In meat, the acidic nature acts to partially breaks down tough collagen fibres and thus tenderise it. Lemon juice is also used as a short-term preservative on those foods that tend to oxidize and turn brown after being sliced, such as apples, bananas, and avocados. Known as enzymatic browning, the juice's acidity acts to denature the enzymes that cause the colour change.

Whole lemons are used to make marmalade, lemon curd and lemon liqueur, while lemon slices and lemon rind are used as a garnish for food and drinks. Lemon zest, the grated outer rind of the fruit, is used to add flavour to baked goods, puddings, rice, and other dishes. In Morocco, lemons are preserved in jars or barrels of salt which penetrates the peel and rind, softening them, and curing them so that they last almost indefinitely. The preserved lemon is subsequently used in a wide variety of recipes.

Endnotes:

1. Being the first is why the whole group of fruits are named after the Citron.
2. Morton, J., (1987), 'Lemon' in 'Fruits of warm climates', Miami, p. 160–168. Available online: https://hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/morton/lemon.html#Description, (accessed September 2nd, 2021).
3. The lemon reached China sometime between AD 760 and 1297.
4. Lemons did not arrive in Sicily before AD 1000 for example.
5. Scurvy is a disease resulting from a deficiency of vitamin C (ascorbic acid). It takes at least a month of little to no vitamin C in the diet before symptoms occur. Early symptoms include weakness, feeling tired and sore arms and legs. Without treatment, decreased red blood cells, gum disease, changes to hair, and bleeding from the skin may occur. As scurvy worsens there can be poor wound healing, personality changes, and finally death from infection or bleeding.

Edible Tudor England at Berkhamsted Castle

The motte-and-bailey castle in Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire, was built to control a key route between London and the Midlands as part of the consolidation of Norman power in England during the 11th-century. Surrounded by protective earthworks, and a deer park for hunting, the castle became the new administrative centre of the former Anglo-Saxon settlement of Berkhamsted. In later years, the castle was occupied variously by (amongst others) the Earls of Cornwall, Edward the Black Prince, Archbishop Thomas Becket, and even Geoffrey Chaucer. In the late 15th-century, the castle was occupied by Cecily Neville, Duchess of York (mother of Edward IV and Richard III). By then the castle had become increasingly unfashionable and, after her death in 1495, it was abandoned and fell into decline.

By the mid 16th-century, it was in ruins and unsuitable for royal use. Stone was taken from the castle to build houses and other buildings in Berkhamsted, and it was almost destroyed during the construction of the London and Birmingham Railway in the 1830s. As a result, the castle became the first building in Britain to receive statutory protection from Parliament and is now a scheduled ancient monument. In 1930, the castle passed from the Duchy of Cornwall to the government's control. Today it is managed as a tourist attraction by the Berkhamsted Castle Trust on behalf of English Heritage.

As part of the latter's 'Edible England' Heritage Open days, Tastes Of History introduced visitors to Berkhamsted Castle to late Mediæval and early Tudor food over two days in September 2021 (Sunday 12th and Monday 13th). In the shadow of the motte we pitched our display on the site of the original castle kitchens. Taking our inspiration from the Castle's cooks, all the dishes we served were taken from The Forme of Cury ('The Method of Cooking') [1], an extensive 14th-century collection of English recipes. Unfortunately the original Mediæval manuscript is lost, but the text can be recreated from its inclusion in nine other manuscripts. The most famous of these is in the form of a scroll with a headnote citing it as the work of 'the chief Master Cooks of King Richard II'. Given Berkhamsted Castle's royal heritage we felt confident that recreating recipes produced by the King's Master Cooks would be most appropriate. To that end we decided on a menu that included a 'Grete Pye', two types of tart, a chicken dish, two vegetable dishes and an old favourite, Lemon Posset.

Tarte in Ymbre Day  In the Mediæval Church calendar Ember Days were celebrated four times a year; the word 'ember' (or 'Ymbre') is derived from the Latin phrase Quatuor Tempora meaning 'four times'. Ember Days were observed with fasting (no food between meals) and half-abstinence, meaning that meat was allowed at one meal per day. For those folk who wished to avoid meat completely, then a tart made principally with dairy products which were permitted (cheese, eggs, butter, etc.) makes eminent sense.

Tart de Bry  Alongside Ember Day tarts we also offered 'Tart de Bry', where the name provides a clue to its filling of Brie cheese.

Grete Pye  Pies were very popular in Mediæval and Tudor England. Unlike today, however, this game pie used a pastry that was not intended to be eaten. Rather, the hot water crust was needed to contain the filling and act like a baking tin. When delivered to the table during a Tudor feast as part of a 'mess' [2], the pie lid would be removed and the content shared among the diners. Each person would transfer the filling to their 'trencher' or plate before eating.

Hennys in Bruet  Otherwise known as 'Chicken in Cumin', Hennys in Bruet is an English variation of a popular dish in western Mediæval Europe. In France it was known as 'Cominée' indicating the characteristic seasoning with cumin.

Buttered Wortes  The Old English word 'wortes' is the plural form of 'wort' and simply means 'leaves'. This dish, which we have recreated for the annual commemoration of the Battle of Bosworth Field and frequently include in Sunday lunches, is tasty way of serving leafy greens. Lightly frying boiled cabbage or spring greens in a generous quantity of butter with leeks and seasoned with pepper is perhaps indulgent but delicious.

Chebolace  It is not always easy to identify a historically correct recipe that is suitable for vegetarians. Roman dishes, for example, typically include fish sauce as a flavour enhancing ingredient. Cherbolace, however, was an option that satisfied at least one visitor who singlehandedly polished off a whole bowl. It is a simple savoury green soup spiced with coriander made from onions, spinach and, in this instance, kale.

Lemon Posset  And finally, we could not resist offering visitors the ever popular lemon Posset. In this version, however, no sugar was added to the cream to balance the sharpness of the lemon. While the first record of sugar in English dates from the 13th-century, we thought it appropriate to leave sugar out since at the time of Cecily Neville's residence in the castle it still would have been an incredibly expensive import. We were keen to discover whether the absence of sugar would affect the flavour. As it turned out Lemon Posset remained a big hit with visitors.

The Final Word  Our especial thanks go to incredible staff and volunteers from Berkhamsted Castle Trust who not only organised the 'Edible England' event but made us feel so welcome.

Please feel free to like, share or comment. And if you are inspired to try the recipes, then bon appétit.

Endnotes:
1. Cury comes from Middle French cuire: 'to cook' (spoken in the 14th- to the 16th-century).
2. Circa AD 1300 the noun 'mess' meant 'a supply or provision of food for one meal'. The word in English is derived from the Old French mes meaning a 'portion of food' or a 'course at dinner'. This sense is itself derived from Late Latin missus for a 'course at dinner' (in the literal sense it meant 'a placing', for example, on a table). The notion that a 'mess' meant 'a communal eating place' (especially a military one) is attested by the 1530s. This is a development from the earlier 15th-century sense of 'a company of persons eating together at the same table', originally a group of four.

An Ancient Greek Military Odyssey

'Military Odyssey' is one of the largest multi-period re-enactment shows in the country. With over 4,000 re-enactors and living history enthusiasts in attendance, as well as over 250 stalls and 200 vehicles, a vast period of global history waited to be discovered. Visitors travelled through time from the ancient Greeks and Romans, through the Viking Age, the Medieval period, and on to the time of Napoleon, the American Civil War, the Wild West, World Wars I & II, Vietnam and right up to the present day. The 200 acre site had two separate arenas in addition to the main battlefield, where battle re-enactments took place all weekend. In addition, there were numerous food vendors on site, including a Beer Tent and Beer hall.

Regardless of your historical knowledge, there is bound to be something for you to discover. For our part, we joined friends in the Hoplite Association to produce some recipes from ancient Greece. Such dishes are best described as frugal reflecting the difficulties faced in producing enough food on what was relatively limited farmland across Greece's largely rocky and mountainous terrain. Indeed, the ancient Greek diet is characterised by the "Mediterranean Triad" of wheat, olive oil and wine. The latter have always been a central part of the Greek diet and the spread of grapes and olive trees in the Mediterranean and further afield is directly related to Greek emigration and colonisation.

The Greeks generally had three to four meals a day. Depending on the wealth of a household, a typical breakfast might consist of flat barley bread dipped in watered wine or olive oil, sometimes complemented by figs or olives or eaten with yesterday's leftovers. Interestingly, the name for the watered wine, akratos oinos, was used as the term for breakfast: akratisma. An alternative for richer families, were teganitai, the ancient relative of what we today call pancakes. Teganitai can be made with wheat flour, olive oil, honey and curdled milk. One version was made with a dough of spelt flour and water which, once cooked, was topped with honey, sesame, and cheese if desired:

Goat, sheep and pig meat was eaten, but rarely. Since most of Greece is close to the sea, fish and seafood were far more likely to be on the menu. Given that it was a typical British Bank Holiday weekend, the weather was not as hot and sunny as we would have liked. Without a hot Mediterranean sun, what it called for was a warming stew:

The ancient Greek-speaking world, known as 'Hellas' (see right), encompassed Macedonia, Central Greece, the Peloponnese, numerous islands and spread round the Mediterranean Sea with colonies in modern Turkey and Italy. Being surrounded by or close to the sea, the ancient Greeks were naturally inclined to be sailors and fishermen. Seafood, therefore, was a major part of the diet of many Greeks, as it remains today.

With this in mind, for lunch we prepared two dishes: Fish in a Coriander Crust and Honey-glazed Prawns, served alongside a salad of olives, lettuce, cucumber and Feta cheese:

And finally, we made a red lentil soup (or stew if you prefer). Amazingly, the oldest known carbonized remains of lentil are from Greece's Franchthi Cave and have been dated to 11,000 BC. With that sort of pedigree it seemed only right and proper to create a soup based around the ingredients with which the Greeks would have been familiar:

Despite the weather, the long weekend at Military Odyssey proved a fantastic opportunity to catch up with old friends and meet some new ones. Chatting with visitors and fellow re-enactors enabled us to explore the history of food with special emphasis on the ancient Greeks and their contribution to modern cuisine. And the compliments on how our kitchen looked were a bonus.

As always, feel free to like. comment and share.