Historical Metallurgy Society
The Historical Metallurgy Society is a British nonprofit organisation dedicated to the study and preservation of metallurgical history. Established in 1963 as the Historical Metallurgy Group, it operates as a company limited by guarantee (No. 1442508) and a registered charity (No. 279314). The society provides an international forum for research into all aspects of historical metallurgy, including processes, technology, archaeology, and conservation, spanning prehistory to the modern era[3][2].

Activities and publications
The society organises an annual two-day conference in the UK, often focusing on specific themes, alongside smaller meetings. Its flagship publication, Historical Metallurgy, evolved from the Bulletin of the Historical Metallurgy Society (1963–1974) and became a peer-reviewed journal in 1974. Since 2022, the journal has adopted a platinum open-access model, free for both readers and authors, supported by society membership[5][4]. Additional outputs include the newsletter The Crucible and the Occasional Papers series, compiling conference proceedings[3][5].

Notable contributions
Key activities include conservation efforts to protect metallurgical heritage sites and experimental archaeology projects, such as reconstructing early smelting technologies. Research published in Historical Metallurgy has addressed topics like Iron Age furnace design in Wokingham and pre-colonial ironworking in Zimbabwe[4][3].

Governance and membership
The society is governed through its charitable status, with membership options including digital access to publications or traditional print formats. Members contribute to sustaining open-access research in archaeometallurgy[5][4].

[1] https://historicalmetallurgy.org [2] https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/en/about-the-register-of-charities/-/charity-details/279314 [3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historical_Metallurgy_Society [4] https://hmsjournal.org [5] https://hmsjournal.org/index.php/home/about