What are the iron smelting techniques and iron varieties in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period?

The Eastern Zhou, Spring and Autumn Period and Warring States Period were the early Iron Age in China. The discovery of the Shang dynasty iron blade copper and graupel shows that metallic iron was recognized and used as early as 3000 years ago. However, China started smelting iron and using iron tools in the Spring and Autumn Period. The earliest man-made ironware-iron sword with copper handle was unearthed in a tomb in Lingtai, Gansu Province in the early Spring and Autumn Period. Early ironware was mostly small tools, such as chisel, hammer, knife, etc., but there were also forged medium carbon steel swords, white cast iron tripod and other products. After the mid-Warring States period, iron tools gradually gained a dominant position in agriculture and handicrafts, and played a huge role in social production. Iron-making technology was further improved in the middle and late Warring States period, and ironware was unearthed in all parts of the seven countries, including East Lake in the north, Xiongnu and Baiyue in the south.

Although the iron smelting industry appeared in China later than Bisleyat and Europe, once it appeared, it developed rapidly and remained at the forefront of metallurgical technology in the world for a long time.

There were farm tools, hand tools, weapons and miscellaneous utensils in the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, mainly agricultural and handicraft tools. Farmers have all kinds of V-shaped plowshare crowns, hoes, (thunder), shovels and hammers. The same type of farmers have different forms, such as rectangular wedge and oblong hole, hexagon, trapezoid, concave iron hoe and five-tooth hoe; Sickles include rectangular sickles and claw sickles. Handicraft tools include axe, hammer, chisel, cone and hammer; Weapons include swords, halberds, spears, daggers and daggers; Miscellaneous tools include chippers, scrapers, rings, hooks, hooks, tripods and arrows as bronze accessories.