Wootz Steel

Timeline

1. c. 1–300Mining areas and workshops of South India · IndiaFrom around the turn of the era to the 3rd century CE, South India smelted high-carbon steel by crucible, using local iron ore and plant-based carburization to produce distinctive wavy-patterned billets for local weapons and tools.
2. c. 200–500Persian Gulf–Mediterranean trade nodes · Persian GulfFrom roughly the 2nd to 5th centuries, wootz steel was shipped by sea and land to Persia, the Arab world, and even the Eastern Roman Empire, becoming imported billet for famous blades such as Damascus knives, with its technical reputation spreading across West Asia and the Mediterranean.