The early Iron Age in China began before 1000 BCE, with the introduction of ironware, such as knives, swords, and arrowheads, from the west into Xinjiang, before it further diffused to Qinghai and Gansu. In 2008, two iron fragments were excavated at the Mogou site, in Gansu. They have been dated to the 14th century BCE, belonging to the period of Siwa culture. One of the fragments was made of bloomery iron rather than meteoritic iron.