Without them, you cannot cook (or eat), you have no roof above your head, and you cannot go anywhere. Without them, all the machines in this world would stop working, leaving us without water, electricity, and even clean air. Without them, plant and animal life without be impossible, and our own bodies would turn pale and sick and die. Wondering what we are talking about? Metals, dear reader, metals. We make ovens and stoves with metal to cook our food, we build houses with metal parts, and our cars and trains are mostly made of metal. Most machines are made from metal, as are water pipes and air-conditioning plants. No wonder that the life of humans on earth is closely tied to the discovery and use of metals, so much so that we have the copper age, the bronze age, and the steel age as stages of human civilization. Our language is also full of metal talk: strong as steel, bright as gold, and so on.

People who work with metals are called "smiths" such as goldsmiths (work with gold), and blacksmiths (work with iron). This site is about metals, so we who built it are smiths too! We invite you to join us, and become a smith as well. What do you need? Good question. An anvil, some hammers, bellows, some tongs and a big furnace. What? You do not have those at home? No problem! We do not have them either. Actually, to be a smith, all you need is a good knowledge of metals. What are metals, and where do they come from? What are their uses, and what happens to them after we finish using them? Once you know this, you too can be a smith, just like us.

It took us months to find all this out, but we put them at your fingertips, just a few mouse-clicks away. Join us on this amazing journey through the most useful materials known to man. You could jump right in, looking for a metal that fits your needs, but we advise you to bone up on metals a bit, before you go there.

To whet your appetite, we have put together a little "trailer", so sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride. And remember, Metal Matters ...

Launch Trailer