1590s, originally from Greek and Roman mythology, the last and worst age of the world; the archaeological sense of "period in which humans used iron tools and weapons" is from 1879.
| Iron Age The period in cultural development succeeding the Bronze Age in Asia, Europe, and Africa, characterized by the introduction of iron metallurgy. In southeastern Europe and the Middle East the beginning of the Iron Age is generally dated to around 1200 BCE, with later dates for other parts of Europe and the other continents. Although not as hard or durable as bronze, iron is a more abundant resource, and the Iron Age saw a rapid expansion of metalworking wherever the technology was introduced. See Note at Three Age system. |
The period of history, succeeding the Bronze Age, when people first learned to extract iron from ore and use it to forge tools, weapons, and other objects. The first organized production of iron objects developed in southwestern Asia shortly after 2000 b.c.