Iron is the most common and one of the most important elements on Earth. It constitutes about 5 to 7 percent of the crust of the Earth. Iron had been used by ancient Sumerians and Egyptians some 400 years before Christ. It was obtained from the meteorites that have fallen on Earth and was used for making items like spear tips and ornaments. Somewhere between 2000 and 1200 BC, the smelting of the iron started in Anatolia, Caucasus or India.