中国在公元前513年，铸出了世界上最早见于文字记载的铸铁件－晋国铸型鼎,重约270公斤。欧洲在公元八世纪前后也开始生产铸铁件。铸铁件的出现，扩大了铸件的应用范围。例如在15～17世纪，德、法等国先后敷设了不少向居民供饮用水的铸铁管道。18世纪的工业革命以后，蒸汽机、纺织机和铁路等工业兴起，铸件进入为大工业服务的新时期，铸造技术开始有了大的发展。
In 513 B.C., China cast the Jin casting tripod, the earliest iron castings ever recorded in the world, weighing about 270 kilograms. Europe began to produce iron castings around the eighth century A.D. The appearance of iron castings enlarges the application scope of castings. For example, in the 15th to 17th centuries, Germany, France and other countries have laid a number of cast iron pipes to provide drinking water for residents. After the industrial revolution in the 18th century, steam engine, textile machine, railway and other industries rose. Castings entered a new period of service for large industries, and casting technology began to develop greatly.