Quote:
Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl
I am curious how meteoric iron became associated with antimagic. In folklore, it is supposed to be inherently magical, which was why it was capable of overcoming magical defenses, as its divine magic was stronger than the mortal magic of sorcerers and witches. The idea that meteoric iron is antimagic is much more of a modern conceit.
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The defensive properties of iron in general are pretty old. And present in medieval folklore too, in the form of lucky horseshoes or iron nails the prevent the faeries from getting you. Honestly I suspect most rare materials (and once upon a time iron was) that are at all distinctive have stories about how they both amplify and ward off magic somewhere. And really these are not antithetical properties - mystic amulets normally defend you from evil magic by virtue of being even stronger magic. The idea of anti-powers that prevent something from working at all might be the modern conceit here.
Edit: I wonder if there isn't some influence from kryptonite going on here.