Archaeologists are on a study now to find out the origins of high carbon steel-making and iron in India.

The six-week archaeological research expedition, to a remote region of rural Andhra Pradesh in India, consisted of a team of Exeter University staff and students.

The team has already travelled hundreds of miles criss-crossing the arid landscape of northern Telangana to explore and record archaeological sites where iron and steel were produced over the last two millennia.

Over a period of six weeks, the team recorded over 120 archaeological sites where iron and steel were produced. The area is renowned for the specialised production of crucible steel, sometimes called wootz, a material used in the manufacture of the fabled swords of Damascus.