Iron Objects

The Use Of Iron In Crete Through The Ages

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With the discovery of iron, man began to work and use it to make the tools necessary to his survival. Thus people learnt to handle and exploit this raw material, constantly creating new techniques.

The Ancient Greeks considered metallurgy an important art, sacred to gods and demigods. Hephaestus was the god of “fire, which works for the transformation of metals”, while his sons, the Cabeiri, were “spirits of fire and metalworking”.[1]

During the Second Byzantine Period (961-1204), after two centuries of decay new cultural elements and technologies were brought to Crete, including that of metallurgy (Byzantine motifs).

On the arrival of the Venetians in the 13th century, the nobles and populace began successive rebellions against then until the 16th century. One of the conquerors’ first actions was to control iron imports, as it was a strategic raw material for swords, spears, arrows and other weapons (the Cretans continued to be reknowned archers during the medieval period). Once metals were controlled to prevent the Cretans from acquiring arms, they were also less available for other purposes, such as construction and household items. In contemporary France, Italy and Spain the opposite was true: a telling example is that fireplace fixtures in those countries were all made of iron, whereas in Crete they were nonexistent.

During the peaceful years of the 15th to the 17th century, commerce expanded and city-ports evolved into major trading centres. As economic activity flourished, so too did the use of iron. However, it was still particularly important in making knives.

[1] Vassilios D. Kyriazopoulos, associate professor of the University of Thessaloniki, “Ironwork and Railings from Mykonos”, Zygos, Vols 10-11, September-December 1974.


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