Learn about medieval weapons


The Iron Bed

Wrought iron furniture is an antiquecompletely, so a spongy mass is produced
form of furniture design that has nevercontaining iron and silicates from the
gone out of style. There is a wide rangeore, called iron bloom, which is how the
of products available such as beds,technique gets its name. The bloom is
chairs and tables, patio furniture, andthen manually worked to remove the slag
small accent items such as pot racks,and impurities, giving rise to the term
towel bars, shelf brackets, fireplace"wrought", as the iron was pounded,
accents, hat and coat racks, and more.twisted, and folded. Hammering a piece
It is possible to decorate with theof wrought iron compacts the fibers,
elegance of wrought iron designincreasing the strength of the product,
everywhere in your home.though it lacks the carbon content
There are many styles of iron bed framesnecessary for heat-tempering. During
available, such as American and Europeanthis process, many thin layers of slag
antique reproductions, modern and customare mixed into the metal, producing a
designs, as well as cribs and cradles,distinct "grain", and a fibrous
childrens' beds and daybeds.appearance when broken or bent. Old,
Some companies specialize in restoringrusted pieces of wrought iron have a
real antique cast iron furniture, sincevery distinct grain and resemble
items made of this durable materialreddish-brown wood.
exist dating back to the 1700s andProducing iron by hand in a bloomery was
1800s. Since bed sizes used to bea slow, small-scale and labor-intensive
smaller, original twin and full sizeprocess. Iron production began on a much
beds can be converted to king and queenlarger scale with the introduction of
sizes. Many of these antiques are canopyblast furnaces, which date back to
beds, exotic and stylish, especially ifapproximately 1100 to 1300 in Europe.
draped in fabrics to match the decor ofThese furnaces produce bars of pig iron,
the bedroom.a brittle compound with a high carbon
The term ?wrought? is the archaic pastcontent. By the 1750s, a number of
tense of the verb to work. As theoxides had been discovered to remove the
English language changed over time, thecarbon as carbon dioxide, similar to the
word has been changed to "worked".process in a bloomery. Because blast
Therefore, wrought iron literally meansfurnaces completely melt the iron, the
"worked iron". The process of makingmetal can be molded into cast iron
these products is quite precise andproducts at this stage. However, cast
complicated. Some mass-produced,iron is too brittle to be worked into
light-weight ornamental metal work isshapes as is possible with wrought iron.
not made of iron, but is actually milledWrought iron would be further processed
steel.by faggoting, a method whereby the iron
True wrought iron is a very pure form ofbars would be bundled together like
commercial iron with a low carbonsticks of firewood and hammered into one
content. It is tough, bendable and easypiece, just as iron was worked by hand
to weld. It is too soft to be made intoin medieval times. Each time the iron
high-quality knives or swords, and rustswas folded and stretched, it became a
easily. For the purpose ofbit stronger. Wrought iron which had
weapon-making, societies whichbeen faggoted twice was referred to as
discovered how to carbonize iron and mix"Best", and had a tensile strength of 23
it with other metals to make steel had atons per square inch; if faggoted again
great advantage in warfare over theirit would become "Best Best", then
more primitive neighbors. Because"Treble best" with a strength of 28 tons
wrought iron is a more basic andper square inch. With each processing,
universal product, it is the "iron"impurities would form as long thin
referred to throughout history.inclusions, just as with hammering.
Archeologists find evidence of ironDue to the unique grain of wrought iron,
smelting as far back as 3000 BC init is difficult to work with; like wood,
China. Wrought iron was originally madeif stressed too much, it will split
by a method called bloomery. Bloomeriesalong the grain. Working with wrought
employed small charcoal smelters, ofteniron is an art form that can take years
pots or ladles, into which iron oreto perfect. Unlike mass-produced milled
(iron oxide, or rusted iron) was placedsteel items, a wrought iron product is a
and covered with a thin layer ofpiece of art.
charcoal. The charcoal was lit and airWrought iron can be painted in any
was blown onto it with a bellows,color, and many manufacturers do custom
causing the ore to melt partially.painting and design. Cast iron can be
During this process, the oxygen atomsformed into any shape, so if you have a
would be released from the iron to binddesign or picture you want replicated,
with the carbon in the charcoal,bring it to a cast iron shop and they
releasing carbon dioxide which wouldwill work the image into your furniture.
bubble away. Therefor, little of theBuying wrought iron will give you a
carbon entered the melted iron.unique piece of furniture, and helps
Using this old method, the fire does notsupport local artisans and industries.
get hot enough to melt the iron



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