https://tinyurl.com/yd2ajn79                                                                                                                                                                                                      The abiding imagery of a black drongo perched on the back of a bos indicus, zebu is an exquisite 'visual language' metaphor celebrated in the Kannada cognate expression: hulisu, which means 'to grow rich'.The duo, black drongo and zebu show the affinity of the bird to the animal, the splendour of inter-relationships, proclamation of the life principle, ātmā, among the living organisms of the ecosystem; the bird protects the bull from insects and fights with birds diving down for prey. This friendship metaphor, this polupu, 'beauty' is celebrated with two words: pōḷa, pōḷaḍu of Indian sprachbund (speech union) which signify, respectively: 1. magnetite, ferrite ore; 2. steel. Iron (ferrite ore) in a molten state when infused with carbon through the fumes of wheat chaff called caṣāla (a process described in detail in an ancient text called Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa), the element carbon is infused to transform soft iron into carbon-alloyed hard steel. This knowledge system of carburization, is exemplified by the black drongo which is described in Telugu with an extraordinary expression: పొలి  poli. [Tel.] n. Freshness, bloom. An offering to some village deity. The black drongo is called పసులపోలిగాడు pasula-pōli-gāḍu, i.e. the bird which treats the zebu, bos indicus like a deity of the farmland and offers protection, by removing the insects from the body, skin-pores of the bos indicus.This friendship between a crow and a bull is a celebration.enshrined in hundreds of metaphors of Indus Script inscriptions and artifacts.  Ta. poli (-v-, -nt-) to flourish, prosper, abound, increase, live long and prosperously; n. interest paid in kind; policai gain, profit, interest (esp. in kind); palicai profit, interest; polivu prosperity, abundance; pular (-v-, -nt-) to mature (as grain). Ma. poliyuka to be accumulated; polikka to measure corn-heaps, paying the reapers in kind; give clothes at a marriage; poli, policcal, polippu increase; polivu accumulation, contribution; polima increase, excellence; poliśa, polu interest on paddy; paliśa interest on money; pularuka to subsist, live; pular subsistence; pularcca living, livelihood; pularttuka to sustain, enable to live. Ka. hulisu to increase in bulk, thrive, grow rich; hulusu increase, richness. Koḍ. poli- (poliv-, poliñj-) to increase (intr.; crop, cattle); (polip-, polic-) (god) increases (crop, cattle); n. interest paid in kind (esp. on paddy); pola- (polav-, poland-) to live happily; polat- (polati-) to make to live happily. Tu. poli interest in kind, increase, abundance; pollusu, polsu interest, gain, luck; pullelů abundance, increase. Te. poli gain. Ta. poli (-v-, -nt-) to bloom (as the countenance), shine; polivu brightness of countenance, beauty, splendour, gold; polam, polaṉ gold, beauty, jewel. Ka. pol to be fit or proper, excel. Te. polucu to be suitable, agreeable, beautiful, appear, seem, (K. also) shine; pol(u)pu beauty, agreeableness; polāti, polātuka woman. Cf. 4305 Ta. pular and 4570 Ta. poṉ.(DEDR 4550, 4551)

Source: https://www.ancient.eu/image/7187/ This ritual vessel shows nude heroes protecting a bird and a bull. Such heroes were popular images in ancient Mesopotamia. Late Uruk Period, 3300-3000 BCE. Probably from Uruk (Warka), Southern Mesopotamia, modern-day Iraq. (The British Museum, London)

A Tell as-Sulema cylinder seal shows one-horned young bull and an ox (perhaps a zebu, bos aurochs indicus since many Indus Script inscriptions associate 'fish' hieroglyph with 'zebu' hieroglyph). A black drongo and a fish, respectively, are perched on top of the backs of each of the two animals. The Tell as-Sulema cylinder seal compares with a square seal which shows a joined animal from Mohenjo-daro (?) in National Museum, Delhi. सांगडsāṅgaḍa, 'joined animal parts' (Marathi) Rebus: sangar̥h 'fortification'  (Pashto) jangaḍa 'invoice on approval basis'jangaḍiyo 'military guard accompanying treasure into the treasury' (Gujarati). 'Fish' hieroglyph signifies 'iron' PLUS fish-fin signifies khambhaṛā 'fish-fin rebus: kammaṭa 'mint, coiner, coinage'.

Mohenjo-daro (?) seal.National Museum, Delhi.

 

Cylinder seal impression, Tell as-Sulema, Mesopotamia, level IV (Akkadian to Early Old Babylonian --1950–1530 BCE)(IM 87798); gypsum; length 2.6 cm., dia. 1.6 cm. Drawing by Lamia Al-Gailani Werr; cf. Collon 1987: 143, no. 609; Parpola, 1994, p. 181; bird over a unicorn; fish over a bison.al-Gailani Werr, 1983, p. 49 No. 7; Collon, 1987, Fig. 609. The rebus rupaka, 'metaphor' Meluhha readings are:  kō̃da कोँद 'one-horned young bull' rebus: 'kiln, furnace for smelting' PLUS pōlaḍu 'black drongo' rebus: pōlaḍu 'steel'. 

pōla 'zebu, bos indicus' rebus: pōla 'magnetite, ferrite ore' PLUS ayo 'fish' rebus: aya 'iron'; ayas 'alloy metal' (i.e. after infusion of carbon element, to carburize iron and transform soft iron into hard steel).

ayo 'fish' rebus: aya 'iron'. अयो (in comp. for अयस्) अयस् n. iron , metal RV. an iron weapon (as an axe , &c ) RV. vi , 3 ,5 and 47 , 10; gold Naigh.steel L. ; ([cf. Lat. aes , aer-is for as-is ; Goth. ais , Thema aisa ; Old Germ. e7r , iron; Goth. eisarn; Mod. Germ.  Eisen.])अयस्--काण्ड m. n. " a quantity of iron " or " excellent iron " , (g. कस्का*दि q.v.)(Monier-Williams, p. 85)

pōlaḍu , పోలిగాడు or దూడలపోలడు pōlaḍu. [Tel.] n. An eagle. పసులపోలిగాడు the bird called the Black Drongo. Dicrurus ater. (F.B.I.)  rebus: pōlaḍu 'steel' (Russian. Persian) 

పసి (p. 730) pasi pasi. [from Skt. పశువు.] n. Cattle. పశుసమూహము, గోగణము. The smell of cattle, పశ్వాదులమీదిగాలి, వాసన. పసిపట్టు pasi-paṭṭu. To scent or follow by the nose, as a dog does a fox. పసిగొను to trace out or smell out. వాసనపట్టు. మొసలి కుక్కను పసిపట్టి when the crocodile scented the dog. పసులు pasulu. n. plu. Cattle, గోవులు. పసిగాపు pasi-gāpu. n. A herdsman, గోపకుడు పసితిండి pasi-tinḍi. n. A tiger, పెద్దపులి. పసులపోలిగాడు pasula-pōli-gāḍu. n. The Black Drongo or King crow, Dicrurusater. (F.B.I.) ఏట్రింత. Also, the Adjutant. తోకపసులపోలిగాడు the Raquet-tailed Drongo shrike. Jerdon. No. 55. 56. 59. కొండ పనులపోలిగాడు the White bellied Drongo, Dicrurus coerulescens. వెంటికపనుల పోలిగాడు the Hair-crested Drongo, Chibia hottentotta. టెంకిపనుల పోలిగాడు the larger Racket-tailed Drongo, Dissemurus paradiseus (F.B.I.) పసులవాడు pasula-vāḍu. n. A herdsman, గొల్లవాడు. 

Mohenjo-daro m1431 Tablet with four sides inscribed. Text 2805 

Row of animals in file (a one-horned bull, an elephant and a rhinoceros from right); a gharial with a fish held in its jaw above the animals; a bird (?) at right. Pict-116: From R.—a person holding a vessel; a woman with a platter (?); a kneeling person with a staff in his hands facing the woman; a goat with its forelegs on a platform under a tree. [Or, two antelopes flanking a tree on a platform, with one antelope looking backwards?] 

One side (m1431B) of a four-sided tablet shows a procession of a tiger, an elephant and a rhinoceros (with fishes (or perhaps, crocodile) on top?).

kāru ‘crocodile’ (Telugu). Rebus: artisan (Marathi) Rebus: khar ‘blacksmith’ (Kashmiri) 

kola ‘tiger’ Rebus: kol ‘working in iron’. Heraka ‘spy’ Rebus: eraka ‘copper’. khōṇḍa ‘leafless tree’ (Marathi). Rebus: kõdār’turner’ (Bengali) dhamkara 'leafless tree' Rebus: dhangar 'blacksmith'

Looking back: krammara ‘look back’ Rebus: kamar ‘smith, artisan’.

koḍe ‘young bull’ (Telugu) खोंड [ khōṇḍa ] m A young bull, a bullcalf. Rebus: kõdā ‘to turn in a lathe’ (B.) कोंद kōnda ‘engraver, lapidary setting or infixing gems’ (Marathi) कोंडण [kōṇḍaṇa] f A fold or pen. (Marathi) खोंड khōṇḍa 'A young bull, a bullcalf'; rebus kundaṇa, 'fine gold' (Kannada); konda 'furnace, fire-altar'  kō̃da कोँद 'furnace for smelting':  payĕn-kō̃da पयन्-कोँद । परिपाककन्दुः f. a kiln (a potter's, a lime-kiln, and brick-kiln, or the like); a furnace (for smelting). -thöji - or -thöjü -; । परिपाक-(द्रावण-)मूषाf. a crucible, a melting-pot. -ʦañĕ -। परिपाकोपयोगिशान्ताङ्गारसमूहः f.pl. a special kind of charcoal (made from deodar and similar wood) used in smelting furnaces. -wôlu -वोलु&below; । धात्वादिद्रावण-इष्टिकादिपरिपाकशिल्पी m. a metal-smelter; a brick-baker. -wān -वान् । द्रावणचुल्ली m. a smelting furnace.

ayakāra ‘ironsmith’ (Pali)[fish = aya (G.); crocodile = kāru (Te.)] baṭṭai quail (N.Santali) Rebus: bhaṭa = an oven, kiln, furnace (Santali)

ayo 'fish' Rebus: ayas 'metal'. kaṇḍa 'arrow' Rebus: khāṇḍa ‘tools, pots and pans, and metal-ware’. ayaskāṇḍa is a compounde word attested in Panini. The compound or glyphs of fish + arrow may denote metalware tools, pots and pans.kola 'tiger' Rebus: kol 'working in iron, alloy of 5 metals - pancaloha'. ibha 'elephant' Rebus ibbo 'merchant'; ib ‘iron'.  Alternative: కరటి [ karaṭi ] karaṭi. [Skt.] n. An elephant. ఏనుగు (Telugu) Rebus: kharādī ‘ turner’ (Gujarati) kāṇḍa  'rhimpceros'   Rebus: khāṇḍa ‘tools, pots and pans, and metal-ware’.  The text on m0489 tablet: loa 'ficus religiosa' Rebus: loh 'copper'. kolmo 'rice plant' Rebus: kolami 'smithy, forge'. dula 'pair' Rebus: dul 'cast metal'. Thus the display of the metalware catalog includes the technological competence to work with minerals, metals and alloys and produce tools, pots and pans. The persons involved are krammara 'turn back' Rebus: kamar 'smiths, artisans'. kola 'tiger' Rebus: kol 'working in iron, working in pancaloha alloys'. పంచలోహము pancha-lōnamu. n. A mixed metal, composed of five ingredients, viz., copper, zinc, tin, lead, and iron (Telugu). Thus, when five svastika hieroglyphs are depicted, the depiction is of satthiya 'svastika' Rebus: satthiya 'zinc' and the totality of 5 alloying metals of copper, zinc, tin, lead and iron.

Glyph: Animals in procession: खांडा [khāṇḍā] A flock (of sheep or goats) (Marathi) கண்டி¹ kaṇṭi  Flock, herd (Tamil) Rebus: khāṇḍā ‘tools, pots and pans, and metal-ware’.

Hieroglyph: heraka ‘spy’. Rebus: eraka, arka 'copper, gold'; eraka 'moltencast, metal infusion'; era ‘copper’. āra 'spokes' Rebus: āra  'brass'. Hieroglyph: हेर [ hēra ] m (हेरक S through or H) A spy, scout, explorator, an emissary to gather intelligence. 2 f Spying out or spying, surveying narrowly, exploring. (Marathi) *hērati ʻ looks for or at ʼ. 2. hēraka -- , °rika -- m. ʻ spy ʼ lex., hairika -- m. ʻ spy ʼ Hcar., ʻ thief ʼ lex. [J. Bloch FestschrWackernagel 149 ← Drav., Kuiēra ʻ to spy ʼ, Malt. ére ʻ to see ʼ, DED 765]

1. Pk. hēraï ʻ looks for or at ʼ (vihīraï ʻ watches for ʼ); K.ḍoḍ. hērūō ʻ was seen ʼ; WPah.bhad. bhal. he_rnū ʻ to look at ʼ (bhal. hirāṇū ʻ to show ʼ), pāḍ. hēraṇ, paṅ. hēṇā, cur. hērnā, Ku. herṇo, N. hernu, A. heriba, B. herā, Or. heribā (caus. herāibā), Mth. herab, OAw. heraï, H. hernā; G. hervũ ʻ to spy ʼ, M. herṇẽ. 2. Pk. hēria -- m. ʻ spy ʼ; Kal. (Leitner) "hériu"ʻ spy ʼ; G. herɔ m. ʻ spy ʼ, herũ n. ʻ spying ʼ. Addenda: *hērati: WPah.kṭg. (Wkc.) hèrnõ, kc. erno ʻ observe ʼ; Garh. hernu ʻ to look' (CDIAL 14165) Ko. er uk- (uky-) to play 'peeping tom'. Kui ēra (ēri-) to spy, scout; n. spying, scouting; pl action ērka (ērki-). ? Kuwi (S.) hēnai to scout; hēri kiyali to see; (Su. P.) hēnḍ- (hēṭ-) id. Kur. ērnā (īryas) to see, look, look at, look after, look for, wait for, examine, try; ērta'ānā to let see, show; ērānakhrnā to look at one another. Malt. ére to see, behold, observe; érye to peep, spy. Cf. 892 Kur. ēthrnā. / Cf. Skt. heraka- spy, Pkt. her- to look at or for, and many NIA verbs; Turner, CDIAL, no. 14165(DEDR 903)

h1953A

h1953B

h1953a,b

पोळ pōḷa, 'zebu, bos indicus' rebus: pōḷa ‘magnetite, ferrous-ferric oxide Fe3O4',

aya 'fish' rebus: aya 'iron' ayas 'alloy metal'

dula 'two' rebus: dul 'metal casting'

baṭa 'rimless pot' rebus: baṭa 'iron' bhaṭa 'furnace'

Sign 387 bun-ingot shape (oval) + 'riceplant', i.e. ingots worked on in a smithy/forge. This hypertext DOES NOT occur on copper plates. This indicates that Sign 387 signifies ingots processed in a smithy/forge, i.e. to forge ingots into metalware, tools, implements, weapons.

Sign 67 khambhaṛā 'fish-fin' rebus: kammaṭa 'mint, coiner, coinage' PLUS ayo, aya 'fish' rebus:aya 'iron' (Gujarati) ayas 'alloy metal' 

Sign 171 dánta m. ʻ tooth ʼ RV. [dánt -- RV.]Pa. danta -- m. ʻ tooth, tusk ʼ; Pk. daṁta -- m. ʻ tooth, part of a mountain ʼ; Gy. eur. dand m. ʻ tooth ʼ, pal. dṓndă, Ash. dō˘nt, Kt. dut, Wg. dō̃t, dū̃t, Pr. letum, lätəm, 'ätəm ʻ my (?) tooth ʼ, Dm. dan, Tir. d*lndə, Paš. lauṛ. dan(d), uzb. dōn, Niṅg. daṅ, Shum. dandem ʻ my tooth ʼ, Woṭ. dan m., Gaw. dant, Kal.urt. d*ln, rumb. dh*lndōŕy*lk (lit. ʻ front and back teeth ʼ? -- see *dāṁṣṭra -- ); Kho. don, Bshk. d*lndə, Tor. d*ln, Kand. dɔdi, Mai. dān, Sv. dānd, Phal. dān, pl. dānda, Sh.gil. do̯n, pl. dōnye̯ m. (→ Ḍ. don m.), pales. d*ln, jij. dɔn, K. dand m., rām. pog. ḍoḍ. dant, S. ḍ̠andu m.; L. dand, mult. ḍand, (Ju.) ḍ̠ãd m., khet. dant ʻ tooth ʼ, (Shahpur) dãd f. ʻ cliff, precipice ʼ; P. dand m. ʻ tooth, ʼ WPah.bhad. bhal. paṅ. cur. dant, cam. dand, pāḍ. dann, Ku. N. dã̄t (< *dã̄d in N. dã̄de ʻ harrow, a kind of grass ʼ), A. B. dã̄t, Or. dānta, Mth. Bhoj. Aw.lakh. H. Marw. G. M. dã̄t m., Ko. dāntu, Si. data. -- Ext. -- ḍa -- : Dm. dandə́ŕi, dánduri ʻ horse's bit ʼ, Phal. dándaṛi. -- See Add.

Addenda: dánta -- : S.kcch. ḍandh m.pl. ʻ teeth ʼ; WPah.kṭg. (kc.) dānd m., J. dã̄d m., Garh. dã̄t, Md. dat.(CDIAL 6152) Rebus: dhatu 'mineral ore'.

Sign 59 ayo, aya 'fish' rebus:aya 'iron' (Gujarati) ayas 'alloy metal' 

 Sign 211 kaṇḍa 'arrow' (Skt.) H. kãḍerā m. ʻ a caste of bow -- and arrow -- makers (CDIAL 3024) khaṇḍa  'equipment'. 

Hình dáng trống đồng Làng Vạc 1

Zebu on a cire perdue inscription with Indus Script hieroglyphs on a Dong Son Bronze Drum

http://tranquanghai.info/p1807-trong-dong-dong-son-,-wikipedia.html    

Hình thuyền trên một trống đồng Điền (nguồn 1).

See: http://www.vietnamvanhien.net/trongdongbsquang.html

Dong Son Bronze artiface. Zebu and a rider.

Source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/doremon360/3677155474/in/photostream/

Ukku signifies the ingot produced in the metallurgical alloying process which is subjected to forging to achieve the desired shape of a sabre, sword or knife. Thus, pōḷa signifies the ferrite mineral ore, pōḷad signifies the alloy metal using the ferrite mineral ore, ukku signifies the ingot cake produced in a crucible.

 ولاد polād, s.m. (6th) The finest kind of steel. Sing. and Pl. folād P فولاد folād or fūlād, s.m. (6th) Steel. Sing. and Pl. folādī P فولادي folādī or fūlādī, adj. Made of steel, steel. (Pashto) 

pŏlād प्वलाद् or phōlād फोलाद् । मृदुलोहविशेषः m. steel (Gr.M.; Rām. 431, 635, phōlād).   pŏlödⁱ प्वला॑दि॒, 

pōlödⁱ फोला॑दि॒, or phōlödⁱ फोला॑दि॒ (= ) । लोहविशेषमयः adj. c.g. of steel, steel (Rām. 19, 974, 1607, pō^o).   

pŏlāduw^u प्वलादुवु॒ । शस्त्रविशेषमयः adj. (f. pŏlādüv^ü प्वलाद॑वू॒), made of steel (H. v, 4). (Kashmiri)

पोलाद pōlāda n ( or P) Steel. पोलादी a Of steel. (Marathi)

P پولاد polād, paulād, pūlād , s.m. The finest Damascus steel (which with that of Kum is esteemed the best in the East; see fūlād).  P فولاد fūlād, vulg. faulād (for orig. pūlād) , s.f. Steel:—fūlād-kā 'araq, Tincture of steel:—fūlād-kā kushta, Calcined steel.   P فولادي fūlādī, vulg. faulādī (rel. n. fr. fūlād) , adj. Of steel, steel- (Urdu)

Ukku, ingot or cake of Crucible steel http://www.Bladesmithsforum.com   

Crucible steel button. Steel smelted from iron sand in a graphite crucible.https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Crucible_steel_button.jpg

Crucible steel button

Carbon steel, composed simply of iron and carbon, accounts for 90% of steel production.

Steel production (in million tons) by country in 2007

"Crucible steel is steel made by melting pig iron (cast iron), iron, and sometimes steel, often along with sand, glass, ashes, and other fluxes, in a crucible. In ancient times steel and iron were impossible to melt using charcoal or coal fires, which could not produce temperatures high enough. However, pig iron, having a higher carbon content thus a lower melting point, could be melted, and by soaking wrought iron or steel in the liquid pig-iron for long periods of time, the carbon content of the pig iron could be reduced as it slowly diffused into the iron. Crucible steel of this type was produced in South and Central Asia during the medieval era. This generally produced a very hard steel, but also a composite steel that was inhomogeneous, consisting of a very high-carbon steel (formerly the pig-iron) and a lower-carbon steel (formerly the wrought iron). This often resulted in an intricate pattern when the steel was forged, filed or polished, with possibly the most well-known examples coming from the wootz steel used in Damascus swords." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crucible_steel

"Henry Wilkinson, the famous sword manufacturer…Wilkinson’s experiments concluded that only the ingots from Cutch on the India-Pakistan border and where the term pulad was used, produced ‘jowhar’ or watering. He said ingots from Salem, in southern India, had only a slight indication of a pattern and the steel was inferior, but the sample from Cutch was of excellent quality and both the ‘cake’ and finished object exhibited a Damascus pattern. It seems, therefore, that wootz becomes associated with the Damascus pattern before the 1820s but the association is not madefrom ethnographic observations but via European replication experiments…Also in northern India the use of the word pulad indicates Persian connections in the process, further associating Central Asia with the presence of crucible Damascus steel swords. In Central Asia, the term pulad is always used to denote crucible steel. The word pulad can be traced back to the Avesta, the sacred book of the Zoroastrians. There is textual evidence suggesting that the word was used at least by the 6^th century CE. (H. Wilkinson, On iron, in: Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society (5), 1839, p. 389)…Variations of the word pulad can now be found in languages from the Middle East, Central Asia, and neighboring regions as far as Tibet and including the Russian term, bulat…Fundamentally, crucible steel is a homogeneous steel ingot produced by combining low-carbon iron (wrought iron or bloomery iron) with a high-carbon compound such as cast iron or plant matter in a crucible. The carbon diffuses into the low-carbon iron and the desired product is a slag-free steel ingot…The time and place for the origin of crucible steel remains unknown, however, it must be at least a few centuries before the 3^rd cent. CE. Because, by this time, it was well known outrside of its roduction area. During the 3^rd cent. CE, the Alexandrian historian Zosimos wrote a detailed description of crucible steel production and stated that it was being used in India and Persia. (P. Craddock, New light on the production of crucible steel in Asia, Bulletin of the Metals Museum, 29, 1998, p.49). There I also archaeological evidence to support the historical evidence. In India, the site at Kodumanal, attributed to the 3^rd century BCE to 3^rd century CE, is the earliest securely dated site containing crucible that may have been used for crucible steel production. (S. Srinivasan and D. Griffiths, Crucible steel in South India – Preliinary investigations on crucibles from some newly identified sites, Material issues in art and archaeology, 5, 1997, pp. 111-125.) Swords made of crucible steel have also been excavated from 3^rd-4^th cent. CE burials in the Russian Northern Caucasus. (A. Feuerbach, Crucible steel in central Asia: production, use and origins, University College London, Institute of Archaeology, Ph.D dissertation). One of these blades has aligned spheroidal cementite, the metallographic feature that produces the visible pattern. This is the earliest known crucible Damascus blade…Generally speaking, present archaeological, historical, and ethnographic evidence indicates that crucible steel was produced in Sri Lanka and India by the so-called Wootz process  (B. Bronson, The making and selling of Wootz, A crucible steel of India,Archaeomaterials, 1, 1986, pp. 13-51) and in Central Asia by the so-called pulad process." (Ann Feuerbach, 2006, Crucible damascus steel: A fascination for almost 2,000 years, in: JOM, May 2006, Volume 58, Issue 5, pp 48–50).

https://www.academia.edu/397355/Crucible_Damascus_Steel_A_Fascination_for_Almost_2_000_Years

See: Ann Feuerbach: "PRODUCTION AND TRADE OF CRUCIBLE STEEL IN CENTRAL ASIA", Indian Journal of History of Science, 42.3 (2007) 319-336;
A. Feuerbach, D.R. Griffiths, and J.F. Merkel, “Crucible Steel Manufacturing at Merv,” Mining and Metal Production through the Ages", ed. P. Craddock and J. Lang (London: British Museum, 2003), pp. 258– 266.
Ann Feuerbach: "An investigation of the varied technology found in swords, sabres and blades from the Russian Northern Caucasus"; iams 25 for 2005, p. 27-43 (Institute for Archaeo-Metallurgical Studies Newsletter).
Abbott made the observation that patterned steel was being produced in northern India and there the producers called that product pulad.(Abbott, J. 1856. Narrative of a Journey from Heraut to Kivu, Moscow and S't. Petersburg. 2nd edition London James Madden. Abbott. J. 1847 Process of Working the Damascus Blade of Goo_jarat Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal 16.1 417-423 )

“Variations of the word pulad can be found in New Persian (polad or pulad), Mongol (bolat), Russian (bulat), as well as in Tibetan, Armenian (p'otovat'), Ossetic, Grusinian (poladi), Ukranian (bulat), Chechnian (bolat), Turkish, and Modern Arabic (füläd) (Toussaint, pers. com.; Abaev, 1985,265). Additionally, "in Urdu the word is farläd for steel. But in Hindi itself the word exists as phaulad meaning steel " (Toussaint, pers. com. ). Detailed research into the etymology of the word pulad is wanting.  Abaev (1985,265), during his search for the history of the Russian word bulat, proposed that the word may have come from Sanskrit. It can now be argued that theword does indeed come from Sanskrit or one of the many Sanskrit related languages. The word pulad can be viewed as the conjunction of two words pu (also transliterated as fu, phu) and lad (or ladh). In Sanskrit pu means cleaning or purifying (Cologne Digital Sanskrit Lexicon, 2001). There is no direct translation of lad or ladh, however, there are over a hundred words for iron in the various Indo-Aryan branch dialects that use variations of the word löhä, including lauha (see Grierson, 1928,77). The similarity between pu-lauha meaning purified iron, and pulad, meaning refined or purified steel should not be overlooked and strongly suggests a possible etymological origin for the word pulad.”(Crucible steel in Central Asia: production, use and origins Feuerbach, A.M.; (2002) Crucible steel in Central Asia: production, use and origins. Doctoral thesis , University of London, p.158). 

"The initial origin of crucible steel probably lies centuries earlier than the first few centuries CE, as it would probably have taken decades, perhaps centuries, for the knowledge of crucible steel production to spread to other workshops, as well as the awareness of this apparently different type of ‘iron’ to become known and develop a positive reputation outside of the immediate production areas. Without more field research it is not possible to determine where or when the technology of crucible steel originated. However, a possible location and time period where future research should concentrate within lands that are roughly around the Indus Valley and Baluchistn, an area that sometimes was under Indian, and other times Persian, rule (Map 12) (Crucible steel in Central Asia: production, use and origins Feuerbach, A.M.; (2002) Crucible steel in Central Asia: production, use and origins. Doctoral thesis , University of London, p.258). 

http://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/1317704/1/272398.pdf

"A prerequisite for manufacturing crucible steel is the production of iron on a regular basis, suggesting a date after the beginning of the 1s` millennium BC and probablyafter around 500 BC, by which time iron is thought to have been produced on a somewhat regular basis in eastern Central Asia (Pigott, 1985,626). However, there is no reason why crucible steel could not have developed at the same time as iron smelting was developing out of Bronze Age copper refining and casting traditions. Copper-alloy refining involves placing the smelted metal into a crucible and heating it. The slag separates thus refining the metal by removing slag and other impurities trapped in the metal during the smelting process. In addition, the liquid metal may be stirred with green wood which produce gasses reducing copper oxides to metal that would otherwise make the metal brittle when cast (Hodges, 1989,70). Removing slag from smelted iron requires the same materials, (i. e. a ceramic crucible, a furnace, and wood or other carbonaceous matter) but by a slightly different process. Iron has a higher melting temperature and oxidizes more readily than copper therefore higher furnace temperatures are needed and the crucible needs to be closed. However, by adding pieces of carbonaceous material to the iron and placing a lid on the crucible, the iron carbonises and becomes steel, which requires a lower temperature to become liquid, then the slag rises to the surface thus refining the steel. Therefore, the only differences between refining copper in a crucible and refining iron is the use of a lid and placing carbonaceous material into the crucible rather than stirring with green

wood. The similarity is even more pronounced if the smith is using a broken iron bloom and pieces of wood, such as that the proposed method used at Early Islamic Merv. Further supporting the argument that crucible steel may have developed out of refining smelted metal is the idea that crucible steel is "pure" or "refined" metal, proposed by Pliny and later by al-Kindi. The concept of "purifying" the iron may be a

significant clue to its origins not only because of the argument regarding the development from copper refining, but because a large part of Zoroastrianism, practiced in south-eastern Central Asia from the last half of the first millennium BC onwards, was concerned with purification and fire worship. One may speculate that the priests and the craftsmen/scholars would have studied the properties of materials

and fire. If the term "pulad" did indeed originate from a Sanskrit based language as proposed in Chapter 3 then the proposed etymology could be used to support the hypothesis that crucible steel originated in a region where a Sanskrit language was spoken and Zoroastrianism or a related religion, was practiced. The similarities between the languages and religious beliefs found in the Vedas, written in Sanskrit and used in

India, and the Zoroastrian Avesta written in Avestan and used in Eastern Iran/Persia (Asthana, 1976,121) further suggest that crucible steel might have developed somewhere between Northern India and Eastern Persia/Central Asia during the first half of the 1st millennium BC. 

Regardless from where and when crucible steel may have originated, it was known since at least the 3rd century AD. Information regarding the spread of the technology, ingots and/or finished objects by trade is sparse. Al-Kindi and other writers provide some information on production and distribution centres, however the picture of the spread of the material and/or technology is incomplete. Apparently over the next thousand plus years, crucible steel spread to the Middle East, Africa, and Europe as far as Spain with Islamic armies, into Austria with Ottoman Turks, and occasionally as far west as England through trade. Crucible steel objects also spread northeast to Siberia and possibly as far east as China, Korea, and perhaps Japan. However, it seems that the technological know-how remained restricted to Central Asia and India. Perhaps it was the different forging traditions that caused the difficulties in producing crucible steel with the desired Damascus pattern. It is perhaps the presence of steadite that caused the European smiths, such as Moxon (1677), so much difficulty in forging crucible steel. European blacksmithing traditionally used a method of high temperature forging which was not applicable to crucible steel that contained steadite, because the ingot would have cracked. In addition, ethnographic and replication

experiments indicate that the ingot would have had to have been annealed before forging, unlike an ingot of carburized bloomery iron or directly smelted steel. Low temperatures, repeated forging and air cooling or low temperature quenching, were all necessary parts of the crucible and Damascus steel forging process, in contrast to other ferrous metallurgical traditions which used high temperature forging and high

temperature quenching." (Crucible steel in Central Asia: production, use and origins Feuerbach, A.M.; (2002) Crucible steel in Central Asia: production, use and origins. Doctoral thesis , University of London, p.259 - 261). 

http://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/1317704/1/272398.pdf

"It is generally accepted that Damascus steel was made in southern India, most notably in the region of modern Hyderabad, and exported to the Middle East and China (where it was called fulad and binrespectively.)...By the 19th C the best swords were made in Persia, but still using crucible steel imported from India...Bin iron, which is produced by the Western Barbarians, is especially fine … It is so hard and sharp that it can cut gold and jade. (Li Shizhen, 10th C) The Hindus excel in the manufacture of iron… They have also. workshops wherein are forged the most famous sabres in the world. …It is impossible to surpass the edge you get from Indian Steel. (al-Edrisi, c. 1160)...The damask or water patterns of forged Damascus steel are its most distinguishing visible feature. Medieval Arabic authors were effusive in their praise of the beauty and mystery of watered steel blades: It has a water whose wavy streaks are glistening. It is like a pond over whose surface the wind is gliding. (Aws bin-Hadjar, c. 540.)...Fraser74 and Egerton75 suggest that Timur’s relocation of metalworkers to Samarkand (in 1398) is responsible for Persia becoming the leading region for manufacture of Damascus swords by the 19th C...Following the Sepoy Mutiny and Indian Rebellion of 1857-9, the English government enacted new laws to regain control of its Indian colony. Damascus swords, which had become symbols of Indian cultural identity, were collected and destroyed, and the making of new swords was restricted. In 1866, the English prohibited Indian steel making, ostensibly to preserve the remaining forests... It does appear to be correct that much of this crucible steel came from India in medieval times, although there is evidence that it was also produced in Central Asia, Iran, and Moorish Spain. "

http://caidwiki.org/images/2017_Research_Paper_Damascus_Steel.pdf On slaves and silk hankies; seeking truth in Damascus steel by Stephen C. Alter (2017)

South Indian Iron Age iron and high carbon steel: with reference to Kadebakele and comparative insights from Mel-siruvalur: Sharada Srinivasan et al., 2009

"Abstract This paper is based on studies of the use and modes of production of high carbon iron alloys in relation to surface finds from Iron Age and early historic sites in southern India, in particular the site of Kadebakele where recent excavations have revealed finds of iron and steel, some of which according to preliminary studies, seem to be of a higher carbon content. Preliminary comparative studies are also made on surface finds of crucibles related to high carbon steel production at Mel-siruvalur. Introduction The iron and steel artefacts uncovered from the site of Kadebakele, Karnataka in southern India span the early phases of occupation radiocarbon dated from 800 to 400 BC. This site has been excavated by a collaborative team from the Karnataka Department of Archaeology, the University of Michigan, and the University of Chicago. The site was occupied from at least the early 1st millennium BC until the early centuries AD. Radiocarbon dates from the Iron Age period span from c.800 to 400 BC and it isthought that iron/ steel artefacts from these levels may rank among the very early well-dated examples of higher carbon steels."

"The black drongo (Dicrurus macrocercus) is a small Asian passerine bird of the drongo family Dicruridae. It is a common resident breeder in much of tropical southern Asia from southwest Iran through India and Sri Lanka east to southern China and Indonesia. It is a wholly black bird with a distinctive forked tail and measures 28 cm (11 in) in length. It feeds on insects, and is common in open agricultural areas and light forest throughout its range, perching conspicuously on a bare perch or along power or telephone lines. The species is known for its aggressive behaviour towards much larger birds, such as crows, never hesitating to dive-bomb any bird of prey that invades its territory. This behaviour earns it the informal name of king crow. Smaller birds often nest in the well-guarded vicinity of a nesting black drongo. Previously grouped along with the African fork-tailed drongo (Dicrurus adsimilis), the Asian forms are now treated as a separate species with several distinct populations." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_drongo పోలడు (p. 820) pōlaḍu , పోలిగాడు or దూడలపోలడు pōlaḍu. [Tel.] n. An eagle. పసులపోలిగాడు the bird called the Black Drongo. Dicrurus ater. (F.B.I.)  rebus: pōlaḍu 'steel' (Russian. Persian) 

A zebu bull tied to a post; a bird above. Large painted storage jar discovered in burned rooms at Nausharo, ca. 2600 to 2500 BCE. Zebu and black Nausharo pot. Black drongo and zebu. Mohenjo-daro seal. Zebu PLUS a pair of black drongos. dula 'pair' rebus: dul 'metal casting'. 

Sign 286 variants, Indus Script

Circumscript: four short strokes: gaṇḍā 'four' rebus: kaṇḍa 'fire-altar'. Sign 286 is a composite of Sign 284 with infixed spoked wheel. The reading of hypertext of Sign 286 is: 

m1118

Cylinder (white shell) seal impression; Ur, Mesopotamia (IM 8028); white shell. height 1.7 cm., dia. 0.9 cm.; cf. Gadd, PBA 18 (1932), pp. 7-8 

Louvre Museum. Susa pot .Clay storage pot discovered in Susa (Acropole mound), ca. 2500-2400 BCE (h. 20 ¼ in. or 51 cm). Musee du Louvre. Sb 2723 bis (vers 2450 avant J.C.)Shows 'fish' + black drongo hieroglyphs to signify the contents: aya 'alloy metal, steel implements'. The lid is also a hypertext: ḍhaṁkaṇa 'lid' rebusdhakka 'excellent, bright, blazing metal article'  The hieroglyphs and Meluhha rebus readings on this pot from Meluhha are: 1. kāṇḍa 'water' rebus: khāṇḍā 'metal equipment'; 2. aya, ayo 'fish' rebus: aya 'iron' ayas 'metal alloy'; khambhaṛā 'fish fin' rebus: kammaṭ a 'mint, coiner, coinage' 3.  करड m. a sort of duck -- f. a partic. kind of bird ; S. karaṛa -ḍhī˜gu m. a very large aquatic bird (CDIAL 2787) karaṇḍa‘duck’ (Samskrtam) rebus: karaḍā 'hard alloy'; PLUS 4. meṛh 'rope tying to post, pillar’ rebus meḍ‘iron’ med ‘copper’ (Slavic) 

Carved chlorite plaque of the Halil Rud. పోలడు  pōlaḍu, 'black drongo' percfhed on the back of पोळ pōḷa, 'Zebu, bos indicus' rebus: magnetite ore, steel.

1. https://www.harappa.com/blog/indus-civilization-through-halil-rud-civilization-object
2. pōḷa 'zebu, bos indicus' rebus: pōḷa 'magnetite, ferrite ore'; pōladu 'black drongo bird' rebus: pōḷad 'steel' The semantics of bull (zebu) PLUS black drongo bird are the reason why the terracotta bird is shown with a bull's head as a phonetic determinative to signify 'steel/magnetite ferrite ore'.

     of Sarasvati Script corpora is rebus: pōlāda 'steel', pwlad (Russian), fuladh (Persian) folādī (Pashto) पोलाद   pōlāda n ( or P) Steel. पोलादी a Of steel.(Marathi) 
   
   
   pōḷa 'zebu' rebus: pōḷa 'magnetite, ferrite ore) pōladu 'black drongo bird' rebus: pōḷad 'steel' The semantics of bull (zebu) PLUS black drongo bird are the reason why the terracotta pōladu  bird is shown with pōḷa bull's head as a phonetic determinative to signify 'steel/magnetite ferrite ore'.
3. A hieroglyph signifies पोला  pōlā a Hollow, unfilled, light--an ear or a grain of corn Rebus: pōḷa 'magnetite, ferrite ore.

4. Kernos ring of Balochistan with Indus Script hypertext with pōḷa 'zebu' and pōladu 'black drongo' signify magnetite ore and steel 

   https://tinyurl.com/y7zupcay

   Thanks to @manasataramgini for exquisite images of a Kernos ring (evidenced ca. 2000 BCE from Greek pottery) said to be from Balochistan. This artifiact (now said to be in Japan) contains Indus Script hypertext of hieroglyphs, zebu abd black drongo. The Indus Script hypertext readings are:

   pōḷa'bos indicus, zebu' rebus: pōḷa'magnetite, ferrite ore'

   pōladu 'black drongo bird' rebus: [pōlāda] n ( or P) [pōlādi] 'steel'.

   manasataramgini‏ @blog_supplement 9m9 minutes ago
   

   More

   A rare e.g. of a Kernos ring from the subcontinent. It was apprently smuggled to japan from a site in what's today Balochistan

   Top view of same: Kernos rings were made frequently in bronze age and later West Asia and Greece. This e.g. from subcontinent suggests that it was made using local motifs but inspired closely by west Asian Kernos design.

   Bottom view of same along with a stand alone bull from what's today Balochistan showing similar techinique of manufacture.

   Background note on Kernos ring

   In the typology of ancient Greek pottery, the kernos (Greek κέρνος or κέρχνος, plural kernoi) is a pottery ring or stone tray to which are attached several small vessels for holding offerings. Its unusual design is described in literary sources, which also list the ritual ingredients it might contain.^[1] The kernos was used primarily in the cults of Demeter and Kore, and of Cybele and Attis.^[2]

   The Greek term is sometimes applied to similar compound vessels from other cultures found in the Mediterranean, the Levant, Mesopotamia, and South Asia.^[3]

   Literary description

   Athenaeus preserves an ancient description of the kernos as

   “

   a terracotta vessel with many little bowls stuck on to it. In them there is sage, white poppy heads, wheat, barley, peas (?), vetches (?), pulse, lentils, beans, spelt (?), oats, cakes of compressed fruit, honey, olive oil, wine, milk, and unwashed sheep's wool. When one has carried this vessel, like a liknophoros, he tastes of the contents.[4]

   ”

   The kernos was carried in procession at the Eleusinian Mysteries atop the head of a priestess, as can be found depicted in art. A lamp was sometimes placed in the middle of a stationary kernos.^[5]

   References[edit]

   1. Jump up^ Jacquelyn Collins-Clinton, A Late Antique Shrine of Liber Pater at Cosa (Brill, 1976), pp. 29 –30 online.
   2. Jump up^ Phillippe Borgeaud, Mother of the Gods: From Cybele to the Virgin Mary (Johns Hopkins University Press, 1996, English translation 2004), passim.
   3. Jump up^ Excavations at Mohenjo Daro, Pakistan: The Pottery (University of Pennsylvania Museum, 1986), p. 226 online.
   4. Jump up^ Athenaeus 11.478c = Polemon, frg. 88 Preller; English translation from Homer A. Thompson, Hellenistic Pottery and Terracottas (American School of Classical Studies at Athens, 1987), p. 448 online.
   5. Jump up^ The verb kernophorein means "to bear the kernos"; the noun for this is kernophoria; Stephanos Xanthoudides, "Cretan Kernoi," Annual of the British School at Athens 12 (1906), p. 9.

   Terracotta kernos from the Cycladic period (ca.2000 BC), found at Melos

   In this votive plaque depicting elements of the Eleusinian Mysteries, a female figure (top center of rectangular portion) wears a kernos on her head

   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kernos
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

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   Ring-shaped with bull's head and three small vases, part of fourth, and place for fifth on ring. Twisted basket handle with one of pair of doves on top. Conventional decoratin of herring-bone and floral patterns in dark brown on light pinkish brown clay. Nostrils of bull pierced, and a third hole below. Amphora, 2 skyphoi painted solid. Filled arcs connected by diagonals. Chevrons, triangles. Close Style, perhaps fr. Rhodes or Cyprus (EV) Early Aegean, Helladic, Bronze Age, Late Helladic Period, about 1200–1100 B.C.E Diameter: 26.7 cm (10 1/2 in.).http://educators.mfa.org/ancient/kernos-libation-vase-11183

   Line-drawing of the tripartite kernos for the Heraion of Samos | Tripartite Offering Vessels

   https://gath.files.wordpress.com/2007/12/close-up-view-of-2007-kernos.jpg

   
   
   Terracotta tripartite kernos. Louvre Museum.https://www.pinterest.com/pin/457748749602706628/
   
   Syrian ceramic tripartite vessel with ibex figure. https://www.pinterest.com/pin/457748749602703821/
   
   
   

   Terracotta ring-kernos (offering vase)

   Period:

   Cypro-Geometric I

   Date:

   ca. 1050–950 B.C.

   Culture:

   Cypriot

   Medium:

   Terracotta

   Dimensions:

   H. 4 7/16 in. (11.3 cm)

   Classification:

   Vases

   Credit Line:

   The Cesnola Collection, Purchased by subscription, 1874–76

   Accession Number:

   74.51.659

   
   

   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   https://metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/240246
6. Zebu, black drongo.