From the Archaic Traditions to Iron Man

Abstract

The production of iron supplanted bronze both in terms of technology and in its practical, widespread use in ancient civilizations. People who practice the art and technique of iron metallurgy, the blacksmith, are, according to historian Mircea Eliade, "the main agent of diffusion of mythologies, rites and metallurgical mysteries", remodeling and significantly expanding the previous beliefs. Eliade also states that "once victorious, the iron age, whose mythology has been largely submerged still survives in traditions, taboos and mostly unsuspected superstitions". Indeed, the most prestigious god in the alchemical art in the Middle Ages, together with Hermes, was the lame and smith god Hephaestus. Iron tools also participated in the religious mysteries. Some of the major gods who were part of the pantheons of several cultures that developed metallurgy were blacksmiths themselves or owners of iron instruments, almost always weapons. In the 20th century, iron, now turned into steel, instigated mankind to create a new myth, even as the industrialized world faltered in a sentiment of ambivalence. As technology has affected most aspects of our daily lives, distrust of their side-effects and their unintended consequences fueled a loss of confidence in the understanding of technological progress; nevertheless, iron (steel) has not apparently lost its status as one of its greatest symbols. Iron Man, created by Stan Lee in 1963, is among the modern legends that best represent this current ambivalence and the legacy of archaic traditions.