Eli5 how was steel made/melted in ancient times? Coal wasn’t everywhere, was it?

Question

Eli5 how was steel made/melted in ancient times? Coal wasn’t everywhere, was it?

In: 128

Answer 1

Charcoal can be made from burning wood in an oxygen starved environment.

So you could say you can find it anywhere a fire has been and likely predates modern humans.

Humans have been using it for thousands of years for various purposes.

Many stories of early steel production involve charcoal and not actual coal as the carbon source.