Wootz Steel got its name because of the strange patterns on the steel created during the manufacturing process. This blade was also known as the "Damascus Steel" or the Damascus Blade.

The name of the steel may have been a Anglicization of the Telegu word "ukku" which means steel.

The technique for creating this steel was developed in India around 300 BCE. The steel was created by mixing iron ore and charcoal with glass and a small piece of either white or black hematite then heating it in a furnace. The knowledge of how to create the steel was lost around the 1700's. In 1980, the technique was finally rediscovered by Dr. Oleg Sherby and Dr. Jeff Wadsworth at Stanford University and Livermore National Laboratories.

During the Crusades, the Damascus blade was responsible for much of the victories by the Muslim armies against the Christians. The Wootz steel swords, especially the Damascus blades, were known for their sharpness and toughness. The Catholic church (The Vatican) floated rumors that the blade was created by cooling the blade in blood rather than water. Eventually, the need to match the strength of the steel, Europe began its own experiments into metallurgy.

BEING A COMPREHENSIVE COLLECTION OF WRITINGS AND SPEECHES ON THE PRESENT SITUATION

BY MAHATMA GANDHI

Second Edition
1922

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