Blood and Iron: Political Fragmentation in the Ancient Eastern Mediterranean
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ID: 325058
2026
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Abstract
<p>The introduction of iron metallurgy around 1200 BCE was a transformative technology shock, marking the end of the Bronze Age. Bronze required a mixture of copper and tin, with the relative scarcity of tin restricting access of the metal to elites and large imperial powers. In contrast, iron was associated with more equal access to weapons and agricultural tools. I put forward the theory that the introduction of iron reduced elite power relative to non-elites, leading to increased political fragmentation. I use newly created shapefiles of ancient polities at the century level to empirically test the hypothesis that more equal access to weapons led to greater inter- and intra-polity competition, leading to higher levels of political fragmentation after 1200 BCE. I find that access to iron metallurgy is associated with a 1.188-1.892 unit increase in polity fragmentation, measured by the number of polities in a given grid-cell.</p>
| Reference Key |
openalex_W4395046894
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|---|---|
| Authors | Patrick Fitzsimmons |
| Journal | the economic journal |
| Year | 2026 |
| DOI |
10.1093/ej/ueag100
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| URL | |
| Keywords | Keywords not found |
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