furnace, kiln or oven

Part of the reorganisation of the archaeological open-air area at Asparn are plans for a remaking of the Iron Age workshop area. The construction of an Iron Age smithy and a glass production furnace are also being planned. As is widely known ‘glass can be made out of quartz sand, potash and lime’. But is it as easy as that? It is therefore legitimate to discuss here the experimental efforts involved in its production.

The problem of steel

In 2006 the remains of two lime kilns from the Roman Empire period were discovered in Tuněchody near Chrudim in the Czech Republic. These finds became the object of a detailed multidisciplinary research project resulting in hypotheses on the use of the kilns. Based on these hypotheses experimental research was designed (Thér et al. 2010)...

Building and operating a small bloomery iron furnace is certainly a wonderful public demonstration for any museum or living history site. It is however a complex technical process, with many individual factors combining for success. Over the last decade in North America, small teams of blacksmiths have developed predictable working methods through trial and much error. This direct practical experience can provide some insights into questions that even the best researched theories may not be able to solve.