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655-705 (Hard)|   Strengthen|                                 
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piyushnagre99
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For over two centuries, no one had been able to make Damascus bladesb 04 Sep 2025, 07:41
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Hi KarishmaB egmat GMATNinja ,

I am still not fully convinced with answer choice D.

Option D says the original source of iron was exhausted.
So how did the contemporary sword maker make DB using the same original source of iron?
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For over two centuries, no one had been able to make Damascus bladesb 04 Sep 2025, 08:36
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Your confusion stems from a critical language distinction in the passage. Let me clarify:
What the passage actually says:

The contemporary sword maker used iron with trace impurities that "precisely matched those present in" the historic iron
This means the composition was the same, not the physical source

What this means:

- The original iron mine/source was exhausted centuries ago ✓
- The contemporary sword maker found iron from a different source that happened to have the same trace impurities ✓
- No contradiction exists!

Think about the logical chain:

- Historic fact: Damascus blade production stopped abruptly when the iron source was exhausted
- Recent development: Someone finally made Damascus blades again, but only after finding iron with matching trace impurities
- Logical conclusion: The specific trace impurities (not just any iron) must be essential

If the trace impurities weren't crucial, why would production have stopped immediately when that particular iron source ran out? Sword makers would have simply used different iron and continued making Damascus blades.
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For over two centuries, no one had been able to make Damascus bladesb 04 Sep 2025, 20:34
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piyushnagre99 - Check out the link below if you need a more detailed solution: https://neuron.e-gmat.com/verbal/questi ... b-416.html
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For over two centuries, no one had been able to make Damascus bladesb 06 Sep 2025, 09:15
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Thanks for the detailed clarification.

I finally got it.

egmat
Your confusion stems from a critical language distinction in the passage. Let me clarify:
What the passage actually says:

The contemporary sword maker used iron with trace impurities that "precisely matched those present in" the historic iron
This means the composition was the same, not the physical source

What this means:

- The original iron mine/source was exhausted centuries ago ✓
- The contemporary sword maker found iron from a different source that happened to have the same trace impurities ✓
- No contradiction exists!

Think about the logical chain:

- Historic fact: Damascus blade production stopped abruptly when the iron source was exhausted
- Recent development: Someone finally made Damascus blades again, but only after finding iron with matching trace impurities
- Logical conclusion: The specific trace impurities (not just any iron) must be essential

If the trace impurities weren't crucial, why would production have stopped immediately when that particular iron source ran out? Sword makers would have simply used different iron and continued making Damascus blades.
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For over two centuries, no one had been able to make Damascus bladesb 10 Sep 2026, 12:48
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