SOFT STONES
Forging and casting are the oldest methods of metal processing, but the first is twice as old as the second. Apparently, the forging technology was discovered during the processing of stone, when a copper nugget came across as a workpiece for the ancient master. They began to forge copper about 11 thousand years ago, but the discovery did not find practical application: only small tools and jewelry could be made from small nuggets. The copper age began much later, when hot metallurgy was subjugated to people. It is believed that it originated in the Middle East around the 4th millennium BC, in Europe and China - in the 3rd-2nd millennium, and in Latin America - only at the beginning of the 1st millennium BC The spread of casting technology was facilitated by the development of pottery production: in ceramic forms, in contrast to earth forms, it was possible to obtain relatively accurate products. Casting greatly simplified the process of manufacturing tools, and a copper ax when felling a wood turned out to be three times more effective than a stone one. However, copper was only suitable for processing relatively soft materials, and the reserves of nuggets were quickly depleted. The discovery of bronze, an alloy of copper and tin, gave a new impetus to metallurgy.
BRONZE AGAIN IRON
The new alloy - harder, but just as technologically advanced - revolutionized many fields - from art to military equipment. It was already worth it to build real mines for metal mining - with an extensive network of mines, trolleys and pumping water from adits (by the 1st millennium BC, mankind had such opportunities). The discovery of a much more common iron at first could not shake the position of bronze as a strategic material, and only steel noticeably replaced it, although it did not become a full replacement. Guns, for example, were cast from bronze until the 18th century, until they learned how to make durable cast iron. By the way, a breakthrough in the "cannon" technology of cast iron was accelerated by a well-known decree, according to which the master foundry himself made the first shot from the gun. The number of guns that exploded when fired quickly subsided.
For two thousand years, bronze castings have had another important advantage over steel forged products - standard (even the ancients cast parts in special machines in batches of a hundred pieces). Hand forging could not provide noticeable accuracy of products, and the corresponding machines appeared in Europe only by the XVIII century. Although forging, for example, cores made of iron and lead began already in the 16th century. Standards were then very arbitrary - often the cores were only suitable for "their" cannon.
AMONG ROLLS
Rolling can be considered a shock-free forging option. As a rule, the first rolling mills date back to the end of the 18th century, but back in the 11th century the Westphalian monk Roger tells of a similar device - the “organarium”. However, the narrative also mentions elements related to stamping - hammer blows and turning over parts that are not required during rolling. The oldest image of a rolling mill (1615) belongs to Salomon de Co (see. Fig.). At that time, only soft metals were rolled out between the rollers - gold and silver, copper, brass, organ alloy. After all, iron required, in addition to strong rolls, strong heating.
Initially, iron sheets were made by punching under a hammer. Scrap iron, copper and brass sheets went to the wire. Since the XVI century, shears began to be driven from water wheels, and real hot rolling mills appeared only at the end of the XVII century. England became the center of production - there already from 1742 tin was made, from the 1750s - "boiler iron", and from 1769 - "figured iron", balls, etc. In 1783, John Westwood attached a roll drawing with finished streams to the description of his patent, which allowed not only rolling round products, but also compacting the metal in a cold state.