Bacon when describing the work of the Punitive Expedition says bow
and arrows were seen, but never was an arrow fired. The arrows found were
poisoned, but the nature of the poison is unknown (p. 57). Dr. F. N. Roth, how-
ever, mentions an old man using bow and arrows. Fawckner observed two or three
pieces of cannon, of British and Portuguese manufacture ; but they were not
mounted (p. 81), and ''was credibly informed that they could make muskets, with
the exception of the lock, in great perfection."

PAPAAFRICA:
Great Benin Pg.124

kingston277: I read in an archaeology book that caste-iron was created both intentionally and unintentionally across the continent, but likely wasn't used much until the arrival of gun manufacturing.

Kanoro:

What was the name of the book?

ChinenyeN:
As for firearms, there is plenty of historical evidence that shows West Africans to have actively engaged in the production of firearms after it was introduced by Europeans. There are a number of local communities even today that are still known to manufacture and not import firearms.

MetaPhysical: I think this discussion is wrongly placed. The topic is inquiring about development and use of cast iron by Africans, it is preemptive to conclude that cast iron, or any alloy of iron for that matter, is only useful in the manufacture of guns.

How about cauldrons, arrow tips, spears, hoes, cutlass, fish hooks, ....so many household implements were made of iron.

Yes, the African had preknowledge and utility of iron before encounter with Europeans. I know Yorubas, and few other cultures as well, had ironsmiths proficient in iron smelting and moulding and it is a cultural craft practiced for centuries.

Kanoro:

Yes that is true but as far as I know, that was all made from bloomeries. Cast Iron was a necessity for precision parts such as muskets. If you make an item by hand such as a gun part or a cogwheel, human error will likely cause it to function improperly. Cast iron allowed you to mass produce items in moulds of the same size and shape.

MetaPhysical:

We cannot at all times rely on written records as the authoritative evidence for historical facts. There are elements of hand crafting in bronze works and wax and stone arts, as well limestone that predated writing and passed down through oral media.

Our brass, bronze, wax, limestone, clay casts were native knowledge that predated Europeans access and have been assessed and valued as world class, why would it be a mystery or a wonder that an iron cast also existed as a parallel craftsmanship in precolonial Africa?

Kanoro: Sorry if this is the wrong forum category but I couldn't find one more appropriate. Europeans and Asians have been developing cast iron for centuries. Africans definitely had well developed iron technology but when you look at history, European technology was slow to be adopted by Africans. For example, though many African Kingdoms made wide usage of firearms, they still relied HEAVILY on imports to keep their arsenals full. The Japanese on the other hand adopted firearms quickly from Europeans and went on to produce their own local versions as well as improve upon European designs. Did Africans ever produce European weapons locally? If not, why? Did they lack certain technological requirements such as cast iron?

shadowwalker101: [img]http://www.?aff=391[/img]
Ask google

Chinaimporter: If by west african,u mean indigineous ones like ijaw..non but if you mean migrant ones like the igbos the yes.cast iron was discovered by the igbos around 2500bc .The true origin of the igbos lies in the sumerian city of ur near the site on ancient babylonia.the igbos establist the ubaid dynasty headed by the great igbo king meshanepada who built a ziggurat in honor of the great god nnanna(also called nanna in sumerian and sin in akkadian) who asked the igbos to migrate to other part of the world to spread civilization in the then young world. Igbos then invented the first alphabet called the cuneiform and left babylon under an igbo family called the Akadians who where the ancestors of modern arabs,Ethiopians and jews through a former sheperd of igbo orign called abraham.
The igbos then migrated to perisia which they civilized and gave her first royal dynasty and their god called Ahura mazda(i hi ura mu aza gi meaning he who answers me in my sleep)
From there they went to ancient egypt where they civilized and gave her first pyramids and also sent a delegation th civilized the barbarians in the north called the greeks.it should be noted that some of the greatest greek men where igbos eg aristotle(erie asi tolu uto), pythagoras(bia ta ara) achilles( aku ili) etc.
The igbos also enslaved the isrealites in both babylonia and Egypt and after they got tired of the city life they migrated to eastern nigeria while civilizing the Nubians, yorubas,fulanis etc on there way.it should be noted that oduduwa and bayegida were all igbos in oduduwa case yoruba legend holds that he is a fair man from the east. The igos are not desended from jews or egyptians rather thses people are all desended from the igbos and and unbiased historical evaluation would prove that

geeudy: always typing rubbish, u don't make reasonable comments in all the trends I have seen u. Just wondering what u're doing here.

Chinaimporter: If by west african,u mean indigineous ones like ijaw..non but if you mean migrant ones like the igbos the yes.cast iron was discovered by the igbos around 2500bc .The true origin of the igbos lies in the sumerian city of ur near the site on ancient babylonia.the igbos establist the ubaid dynasty headed by the great igbo king meshanepada who built a ziggurat in honor of the great god nnanna(also called nanna in sumerian and sin in akkadian) who asked the igbos to migrate to other part of the world to spread civilization in the then young world. Igbos then invented the first alphabet called the cuneiform and left babylon under an igbo family called the Akadians who where the ancestors of modern arabs,Ethiopians and jews through a former sheperd of igbo orign called abraham.
The igbos then migrated to perisia which they civilized and gave her first royal dynasty and their god called Ahura mazda(i hi ura mu aza gi meaning he who answers me in my sleep)
From there they went to ancient egypt where they civilized and gave her first pyramids and also sent a delegation th civilized the barbarians in the north called the greeks.it should be noted that some of the greatest greek men where igbos eg aristotle(erie asi tolu uto), pythagoras(bia ta ara) achilles( aku ili) etc.
The igbos also enslaved the isrealites in both babylonia and Egypt and after they got tired of the city life they migrated to eastern nigeria while civilizing the Nubians, yorubas,fulanis etc on there way.it should be noted that oduduwa a
nd bayegida were all igbos in oduduwa case yoruba legend holds that he is a fair man from the east. The igos are not desended from jews or egyptians rather thses people are all desended from the igbos and and unbiased historical evaluation would prove that

DaVinChiSam: Bros Ahu odi gi?