Abstract
This paper discusses evidence related to the genesis and occurrence of mixed lead-tin ore deposit consisting of cassiterite and the secondary minerals formed from galena. These evidences belong to a very long time period ranging from pre-historic to as late as the nineteenth century a.d. This type of mixed ore deposits was smelted to prepare lead-tin alloys. The composition of the alloy depended on the composition of the starting ore mixture. A nineteenth century evidence for the production of directly smelted lead-tin alloys in southern Thailand is discussed. A unique and rather uncommon metallurgical terminology in Sanskrit language—Nāgaja—was introduced in India for the tin recovered from impure lead. This suggests that Indians developed a process for recovering tin from lead-tin alloys, which in all probability was based on the general principle of fire refining. It has been shown that in the context of India the possibility of connection between the word Nāgaja and the directly smelted lead-tin alloys cannot be ruled out.
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Dube, R.K. Directly smelted lead-tin alloys: A historical perspective. JOM 62, 13–18 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11837-010-0118-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11837-010-0118-3