Preface . . . vii
PART ONE: THE FIRST METALS
1. The Extraction of the First Metals. . . 3
2. The Smelting of Iron and the Production of Steel . . . 12
3. Different Ways of Making Steel—Eastern and Western Steelmaking. . . 24
PART TWO: THE FIRST EUROPEAN SWORDS
4. Celtic and Roman Swords . . . 49
5. Pattern-Welding . . . 62
PART THREE: THE “DARK” AGES IN EUROPE
6. The Revival of Science in Europe . . . 85
7. The Survival of Technology From the Ancient World . . . 96
8. Viking-Age Swords and Their Inscriptions . . . 116
PART FOUR: STEEL ARMOUR AND SWORDS
9. The Invention of the Blast Furnace and Finery . . . 187
10. Bloomery Steel and the Development of All-Steel Swords after 1400 . . . 202
11. The Mass-Production of Steel for Swords and Armour . . . 210
12. The Decoration of Swords by Etching and Gilding . . . 223
13. Medieval European swords after 1000 . . . 230
Further reading . . . 287
Index . . . 291
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