Cold iron
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Cold iron is an archaic term for wrought iron that is hammered without heating in order to compress the metal's fibers, thus hardening the metal. During the Middle Ages, steel was difficult and expensive to obtain, so ferrous goods used by the peasantry were often made from cold iron if they needed to be harder than standard wrought iron. Items like knife blades needed this hardening to provide qualities like edge retention and durability.
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[edit] Folklore
Cold iron is sometimes asserted to repel, contain, or harm ghosts, fairies, witches, and/or other malevolent supernatural creatures. This belief continued into later superstitions in a number of forms:
- Nailing an iron horseshoe to a door was said to repel evil spirits or later, to bring good luck.
- Surrounding a cemetery with an iron fence was thought to contain the souls of the dead.
- Burying an iron knife under the entrance to one's home was alleged to keep witches from entering.
In his story, "Redgauntlet," the Scottish author Sir Walter Scott wrote, "Your wife's a witch, man; you should nail a horse-shoe on your chamber-door."
In mythology, the term "cold iron" is sometimes only applied to cold-worked iron of meteoric origin [citation needed], as such metal has never been heated by human agency. Mined iron must be smelted first, so such iron may or may not be considered "cold iron", depending on the source consulted.
[edit] Later Usage
[edit] Poetry
Rudyard Kipling's poem Cold Iron relies on the cultural value of this concept and its alleged spiritual power, which he ultimately embodies in the iron nails used in the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Interestingly, Kipling also embodied the symbolism of iron in the Iron Ring ceremony he developed for the calling of engineers in Canada. Kipling also referenced Cold Iron in a story of the same title, having Puck, a fairy, say "folks in housen, as the People of the Hills call them, must be ruled by Cold Iron."
[edit] Popular Culture
Cold iron also appears in a number of fantasy role-playing games, such as Dungeons and Dragons. In that game cold iron is given the description, "'This iron mined deep underground, known for its effectiveness against fey creatures is forged at a lower temperature to preserve its delicate properties.'"
Charles de Lint, an author and celtic singer, said "Stone walls confine a tinker; cold iron binds a witch; but a musician's music can never be fettered, for it lives first in her heart and mind."
[edit] Slang
Francis Grose's Dictionary of 1811 defines Cold iron as "A sword, or any other weapon for cutting or stabbing." This usage often appears as "cold steel" in modern parlance.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- http://www.fromoldbooks.org/Grose-VulgarTongue/c/cold-iron.html
- http://www.d20srd.org/srd/specialMaterials.htm#ironCold
- http://www.themystica.com/mystica/articles/i/iron.html
- http://www.shanmonster.com/witch/wards_tools/iron.html
- http://www.harvestfields.ca/ebook/01/016/01.htm#VI._IRON
- "Cold Iron", by Kipling
- Books that some of the above sites cite:
- Guiley, Rosemary Ellen. The Encyclopedia of Witches and Witchcraft. New York: Facts On File, 1989 [ISBN 0-8160-2268-2]
- Briggs, Robin. Witches & Neighbours: The Social and Cultural Context of European Witchcraft. Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk: HarperCollins Publishers. 1996.
- Elworthy, Frederick Thomas. The Evil Eye: An Account of This Ancient and Widespread Superstition. New York: Bell Publishing Company. 1989.
- Lawrence, Robert Means, M.D.. The Magic of the Horseshoe with Other Folk-Lore Notes. Boston and New York: Houghton, Mifflin, and Company, 1898
