Amalgam of geology and history

Cromlech or dolmen near Halaguru

The slopes along the ridge at Karalkatte

Magnet with ore excavated at borewell site

The iron beam and ring at temple, Halaguru

Cassia auriculata, Mimosa tuggula and gold plant.png

Over the past several years, we have been retracing Francis Buchanan’s A Journey From Madras Through the Countries of Mysore, Canara and Malabar, a report of a survey conducted by him under the instructions of the East India Company in 1800-01. In addition to a detailed examination of various aspects of economic and social life in erstwhile Mysore and other parts of southern India, Buchanan also investigated iron smelting, a critical and widespread proto-industry of that period, often overlooked by political and environmental historians.

After reading our recent article on the Journey in which we mentioned Gattipura, an iron smelting site on Buchanan’s route near Magadi, we received a message from Chandrasekhar Math, a geologist, asking whether we would like to visit a similar place, Halaguru (Hulluguru in the Journey). It was an offer we couldn’t refuse. Throughout his Journey, Buchanan’s engagement with the landscape was primarily through revenue considerations.

History unfolded

Rarely was he overwhelmed by their natural beauty; instead, he described aspects that are simply irrelevant to most — the types and composition of rocks, the minerals to be found in them, understanding geological processes and finally, the utility of these resources. Accompanying a geologist would hopefully give us a fresh perspective on viewing the stark landscapes of the Deccan Plateau and how important they may be in understanding the unfolding of history.

As we drove into Halaguru, Math asked us to drive off the main road, along a ridge that ran parallel to the northern bank of the Shimsha river. Basing his research on the records of Buchanan and of H K Slater, a principal officer at the Geological Department of Mysore, Math had literally (re)discovered these magnetite rich iron mines. From biomarkers of minerals, including varieties of grass and bacteria, to topographical rise, pinch and swell, he explained how and where rich deposits of iron ore can be found with utmost precision. But this was not a new science; people thousands of years ago, since the coming of the Iron Age had realised not just the importance of iron but how and where to find it.

A couple of kilometres into our detour, we stopped our vehicle and began climbing the ridge laden with black stones of magnetite iron ore. On reaching the top, Math revealed something that came as a surprise; cromlechs! Black rocks of similar size and shape arranged without any mortar to hold it in place in a circle around a tree with a granite slab now buried in the ground was enough evidence that this was indeed a megalithic site.

The existence of such cromlechs was also reported by Slater during his geological explorations. But to Math there were some important differentiators about this site; first, the circular arrangement of stones that isn’t common to this region and second, cromlechs – he used this term in preference to the more contemporary one, dolmens — found within an iron mining area. Could these have been made thousands of years ago by the early smelters of the Iron Age? Math was convinced this was so; cromlechs within an iron mining area indicated that people here mined iron during the Iron Age, which could well go back in time by some 3000 years.

As we walked along the sections of the ridge that traversed several kilometres, Math described how cross sections of these ridges clearly show the transformation of natural landscapes over time due to human activity. With the abundance of iron ore, the widespread availability of other resources and timber (later bamboo) for charcoal in the nearby hills, the region thrived as a centre for iron ore mining and processing.

During a discussion with an old villager some years ago, Math learnt that in ancient times mining and smelting communities inhabited the gentle slope of a ridge at Karalkatte, not far from Halaguru. Math was confident that an archaeological excavation if ever undertaken would reveal this.

The mining activity in the region would have increased significantly in the medieval period when wars became common, necessitating armies to manufacture large amounts of weaponry from swords to cannons. The scale of operations was huge. The region has not only been known for iron smelting and processing but also where the world-famous Wootz steel was produced. This hard but malleable steel was ideal for manufacturing swords and interestingly, the steel for Damascus swords was sourced from here.

To Math, more than the process of manufacturing steel, it was the quality and polymetallic composition of the ores that resulted in a superior product. Pointing out to a small plant — what he referred to as “gold plant” — Math explained that its presence was a definite indication of gold content in the rocks. And the alloying elements — the stems and leaves of Mimosa tuggula (Sujala) and Cassia auriculata (Kakke) — that were used to produce specialty carbon steel are still found here in abundance, resonating with Buchanan’s comment that the area was “over-run with low Mimosas”.

High concentrations of iron can no doubt be extracted from magnetite ore through industrial processes. In those days, however, the smelters collected the ore when it washed down the slopes during the monsoons. Buchanan refers to this as “the black sand of ore”. This is one of the reasons why smelting was probably carried out along rivulets at the base of ridges and hillocks — as we had seen at Gattipura — rather than on top.

While we were consumed by the scenic landscape, Math was busy with more prosaic observations. Standing over the debris from a failed borewell excavation that apparently went as deep as 300 metres, he demonstrated the stony dust was essentially iron filings clinging pointedly on to a magnet. He reiterated why this vindicated his research that the ridges in this region could be as rich as the Kiruna mines of Sweden.

A few hours of walk had given us a lesson not just in geology but in history, from the Iron Age to medieval times and perhaps the future when high-technology deep mining may transform — for the better or the worse — not just these landscape but also economic and social life of the people who have lived here for millennia.

There was one small detail in Buchanan’s Journey that still perturbed us. In search of iron forges, Buchanan arrived at Halaguru on June 9, 1801, but all he could find were a few blacksmiths manufacturing “iron boilers for sugar works.” Iron smelting units were not to be found; this possibly was because the town itself was burned down twice before his survey — the first time by Lord Cornwallis and subsequently by General Harris after their battles with Tipu Sultan. Destruction of smelting furnaces was after all an important strategy employed by the Company to dismantle the weapon manufacturing capabilities of local rulers.

On our return, we decided to stop at Halaguru, a town with over 2,500 houses, which today is known for a large concentration of the Vishwakarma, an artisanal community. We easily located a blacksmith working with a traditional furnace and tools, crafting a sickle.

Unanswered questions

Unlike Gattipura, the blacksmiths in this town were unaware of any evidence of smelting having taken place at Halaguru in late medieval or early modern times. This was in sync with what Buchanan too had reported. Interestingly, there are also a large number of Vishwakarma goldsmiths (aacharis) at Halaguru. Could this be linked in any way to the gold content in the ore that Math had pointed to? There was no easy answer to this question.

Meanwhile, one blacksmith claimed that although remnants of smelting were not found here, the history of Halaguru is inextricably entwined with blacksmithery.
In the courtyard of a temple dedicated to the folk saint Siddappaji, he showed us a beam made of iron with a semi-circular ring at its base, which the Vishwakarma believe is thousands of years old. There are many more stories of the Vishwakarma — written and oral — that unravel the long history of blacksmiths, and of iron and steel. But for that he insisted we should come back another day, reserving nothing less than a full day with him.

We left Halaguru with an offer we couldn’t refuse.

(The writers are researchers with the project, “200 Years Later: Retracing Francis Buchanan’s Journey of 1800-1801 through Southern India.”)