We have a very good idea about this, now. It is a kind of crucible steel, called wootz. The key detail was the presence of certain impurities in the steel. If memory serves, in the American recreation effort they used glass from a bottle and leaves, and the impurity of interest was molybdenum. The current explanation for the failure of the technique to transmit is that the iron mines which contained the necessary impurities ran dry; this stopped the shipment of the necessary iron ingots, and the technique failed to achieve the desired results on purer steels and so was abandoned.
We have a very good idea about this, now. It is a kind of crucible steel, called wootz. The key detail was the presence of certain impurities in the steel. If memory serves, in the American recreation effort they used glass from a bottle and leaves, and the impurity of interest was molybdenum. The current explanation for the failure of the technique to transmit is that the iron mines which contained the necessary impurities ran dry; this stopped the shipment of the necessary iron ingots, and the technique failed to achieve the desired results on purer steels and so was abandoned.
Oh cool! OK, shoulda chosen a different example ;)
Isn’t it? The larger point stands; just spreading the cool around.