An investigation of ancient Fe artifacts and of the alloying elements in them may give a clue to the origin of the metal. Samples of lake and bog Fe ore, specimens of Fe ore from bedrock, and artifacts supplied by several museunis were examd. spectrochem. for As, Co, Cr, Cu, Mn, Mo, Ni, Pb, Sn, V, Zn, and Ag and chem. for P, Mn, and Fe. Limonite ores are partially formed by the action of plants and plant debris and are rich in Mn, Co, Ni, Mo, and P. It appears probable that old Swedish Fe manuf. was founded on both rock and limonite ores. The presence of P in Fe retards corrosion, as does a few percent of Ni and Mn. C content in most of the artifacts investigated is low, indicating that the ore was reduced below -- AATA -- AATA