Overview

"The material fabric of nearly all settled civilizations exists largely because of pyrotechnology - the generation, control and application of the heat from fire to change the properties of materials. The technological achievements that make contemporary society possible, for instance, are the results of some ten thousand years of development of the intentional use of fire for other than warmth and food. Because pyrotechnology was considered a demeaning craft, there is very little about its practice in ancient texts; our knowledge of early developments is based almost entirely on interpretation of artifacts recovered by archaeology during the past century and a half. Literature in archaeology and anthropology, however, tends to concentrate on the artifact found rather than on how it was produced - on the pot or spearhead rather than the kiln or furnace. There is thus surprisingly little information on the practice and importance of pyrotechnology. ""The Mastery and Uses of Fire in Antiquity"", written by an engineer with 50 years of experience in industrial research and pyrotechnology, rectifies this lack. J.E. Rehder covers the kinds of furnaces, the nature of the fuel used, and the productions created - fired clay, lime from limestone, metals from the reduction of ores, and glass from sand. He also shows convincingly that previous arguments that early deforestation resulted from furnace use cannot be supported. ""The Mastery and Uses of Fire in Antiquity"" provides much-needed information for anyone interested in archaeology, anthropology and pyrotechnology."

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9780773520677

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Rehder has succeeded in presenting complex issues of physics and chemistry in a manner that can be understood by the nonspecialist. This is an important work and there is no question that this not only represents state-of-the-art research, but also will be the only comprehensive treatment of this subject available. Michael Bisson, Department of Anthropology, McGill University

Author Information

J.E. Rehder has been a consultant of metallurgy in the United States and Canada. He has published widely on metallurgy and is a former senior research associate in the department of metallurgy and materials science at the University of Toronto.

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