The reverberatory furnace for ore smelting: An experiment on a South American innovation

Abstract

Research in both South America and Europe in a diachronic perspective allowed to bring together a series of examples relating to the use of a reverberatory furnace for smelting non-ferrous ores. Although the invention of this process may have occurred in multiple places, the main region of innovation is incontestably the Andes. To approach this dynamic process of innovation, we decided to study this using an experimental approach. Over 6 years and 14 tests, a total of 165 h of firings were conducted on the experimental platform at Melle, France. The tests carried out with galena (PbS) allowed us to understand the operating mode and the possible yields of this type of furnace. By analogy, this provides information for the better identification of archaeological remains.