The mysterious 1,600-year-old Delhi iron column is considered the ‘leg of Vishnu’ with special rust resistance.
Close-up of iron column
“Vishnu’s Foot” – A mysterious 1,600-year-old iron pillar
The Delhi Iron Pillar is 7.21 meters high, 41 centimeters in diameter and weighs about 6 tons. This pillar has stood for more than a millennium and is believed to have been built during the reign of Chandragupta II – one of the most powerful emperors of the Gupta dynasty. In the center of the pillar is carved a passage written in ancient Sanskrit.
Although built and “standing still” in the open air for thousands of years, the body of the column has never appeared a single rust.
The secret of the iron pillar was revealed for the first time
Over the decades, scientists from all over the world have always raised a big question mark about the properties of this mysterious wonder.
In 2003, the mystery was finally revealed.
R. Balasubramanian, a researcher called this pillar “living proof” of the skill of the ancient Indian metallurgists. Balasubramanian explains that the iron structure for forging this pillar already has a protective layer called “misawite” that is formed due to the high phosphorus content in iron.
According to Dr Balasubramaniam from the Indian Institute of Technology, instead of removing phosphorus from iron like today to prevent the metal from breaking apart, the ancient Indians kept that phosphorus content inside the compound. This inadvertently helped make the iron column even stronger and also led to the formation of a protective layer of “misawite”.
The Indians believe that this pillar will bring good luck to anyone who can stand with their back to the column, wrap their arms around the pole and touch their hands together, then all wishes will come true. .
The protective layer “misawite” is very good at preventing rust, but it is an extremely thin layer and is easily peeled and damaged by physical rubbing. Fortunately, the authorities were aware of this risk of damage, so they built a protective fence around the pillar.
