Export of iron from SE Asia

rahman · 27th April 2005, 09:59 AM

Wullungga? There's a place called Wollongong in Australia, and it's an Aboroginal name - long before the coming of the British.

One possibility is that there is not enough iron in SEAsia to export. Even when making keris in the old days, people have to use the iron 'pebbles' along the beaches. I guess the scarcity of iron makes the keris more precious, and partly explains the reverence for it.

Jens Nordlunde · 27th April 2005, 10:38 AM

Hi Rahman,

I don't know it they had iron in the place you mention in Australia, but Australia sounds more reasonable than an African import, as iron was to be had from countries much closer than Africa.

I don't know about the rest of SEAsia, but in India they had enough iron, not only for their own use, but they also exported hundreds of tons westwards each year, from the towns in the south. As the Indians also traded eastward, it is likely that the also exported iron to the rest of SEAsia. Another thing is, that the Indian iron can have been so expencive, that many had to get the iron they needed in other ways.

Ian · 28th April 2005, 01:03 PM

Rahman:

Wollongong is on the east coast of Australia, just south of the major city of Sydney. By sea, that would be roughly 2,000 miles from Indonesia, and even further from other areas of SE Asia. Probably not very likely that this was a source of iron, and I'm not sure there would be much iron there anyway. Most of the iron ore in Austalia is mined a hundred miles or more inland. If iron ore was being mined in Australia before the arrival of Europeans, the northwestern areas of the country would be more likely, where there are iron ore deposits.

Ian.

Quote:

Originally Posted by rahman

Wullungga? There's a place called Wollongong in Australia, and it's an Aboroginal name - long before the coming of the British.

Kiai Carita · 28th April 2005, 08:18 PM

The historian Denis Lombard in his books Nusa Jawa Silang Budaya puts forward the theory that the Java keris is small because of the lack of iron in Java. However there has been an experiment conducted in Cilacap and Solo to try and make a keris using Cilacap iron sand melted down using traditional technologies. The experoiment was to ask the question whether or not the java Mpu could make keris using iron from Java even if there is no othe evidence from literature or legend to support that belief. The experimenters succeded in making a keris with pamor resembling pamor Luwu. As for Wullungga in Pramoedya's book 'Arus Balik' I don't think refers to Wollongong in NSW.

Salam Keris

28th April 2005, 08:18 PM	#4
Kiai Carita Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Posts: 91	Iron for Keris The historian Denis Lombard in his books Nusa Jawa Silang Budaya puts forward the theory that the Java keris is small because of the lack of iron in Java. However there has been an experiment conducted in Cilacap and Solo to try and make a keris using Cilacap iron sand melted down using traditional technologies. The experoiment was to ask the question whether or not the java Mpu could make keris using iron from Java even if there is no othe evidence from literature or legend to support that belief. The experimenters succeded in making a keris with pamor resembling pamor Luwu. As for Wullungga in Pramoedya's book 'Arus Balik' I don't think refers to Wollongong in NSW. Salam Keris

27th April 2005, 09:59 AM	#1
rahman Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Singapore Posts: 84	Wullungga? There's a place called Wollongong in Australia, and it's an Aboroginal name - long before the coming of the British. One possibility is that there is not enough iron in SEAsia to export. Even when making keris in the old days, people have to use the iron 'pebbles' along the beaches. I guess the scarcity of iron makes the keris more precious, and partly explains the reverence for it.

27th April 2005, 10:38 AM	#2
Jens Nordlunde Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Europe Posts: 2,718	Hi Rahman, I don't know it they had iron in the place you mention in Australia, but Australia sounds more reasonable than an African import, as iron was to be had from countries much closer than Africa. I don't know about the rest of SEAsia, but in India they had enough iron, not only for their own use, but they also exported hundreds of tons westwards each year, from the towns in the south. As the Indians also traded eastward, it is likely that the also exported iron to the rest of SEAsia. Another thing is, that the Indian iron can have been so expencive, that many had to get the iron they needed in other ways.