West African Iron-Smelting Technology

Timeline

1. c. -1000–500The Niger River basin · NigeriaArchaeological evidence shows that West Africa independently mastered iron smelting in the Niger–Nigeria region, using bellows-driven furnaces to smelt sponge iron and forge it into implements, contradicting the hypothesis of transmission from North Africa.
2. c. 800–1200The Sahel and forest zones of West Africa · SahelBy the early eleventh century, iron-smelting technology had spread throughout the Ghana Empire's territory; smiths produced agricultural tools, weapons, and trade weights, and smelting villages were intertwined with the empire's tribute system, making iron implements a basic material of the everyday economy and social military affairs.
3. c. 1200West Africa · West AfricaIron-smelting technology spread with population migration to parts of Central and East Africa; European steelmaking techniques were introduced during the colonial period, but traditional iron smelting in places like Burkina Faso is still listed by UNESCO as intangible cultural heritage.