This article is about the mineral block. For the ore, see Iron Ore. For the item, see Iron Ingot. For the nugget, see Iron Nugget. For the raw variant, see Block of Raw Iron.
A block of iron is a precious metal block equivalent to nine iron ingots.
Obtaining[]
Breaking[]
Blocks of iron can be mined only with a stone pickaxe or better. If a block of iron is mined without the use of a pickaxe, it drops nothing.
| Block | Block of Iron | |
|---|---|---|
| Hardness | 5 | |
| Tool | ||
| Breaking time[A] | ||
| Default | 25 | |
| Wooden | 12.5 | |
| Stone | 1.9 | |
| Iron | 1.25 | |
| Diamond | 0.95 | |
| Netherite | 0.85 | |
| Golden | 2.1 | |
- ↑ Times are for unenchanted tools as wielded by players with no status effects, measured in seconds. For more information, see Breaking § Speed.
Chest loot[]
| Item | Structure | Container | Quantity | Chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Java Edition | ||||
| Block of Iron | Bastion remnant | Generic chest | 1 | 19% |
| Treasure chest | 2–5 | 33.7% | ||
| Bedrock Edition | ||||
| Block of Iron | Bastion remnant | Generic chest | 1 | 19% |
| Treasure chest | 2–5 | 33.7% | ||
Crafting[]
| Ingredients | Crafting recipe |
|---|---|
| Iron Ingot |
Usage[]
Blocks of iron can be used to store iron ingots in a compact fashion.
Beacons[]
Blocks of iron can be used to "power" a beacon. The beacon can be powered by a 3×3 square of iron blocks underneath it, and can optionally also include a 5×5, 7×7 and 9×9 layer in the shape of a pyramid under the original layer to increase the effects from the beacon. The layers do not have to be entirely blocks of iron, as they may also contain blocks of gold, blocks of diamond, blocks of netherite or blocks of emerald.
Spawning iron golems[]
Blocks of iron and pumpkins[Bedrock Edition only], carved pumpkins or jack o'lanterns are used to build iron golems. The pumpkin, carved pumpkin or jack o'lantern must be placed last, and the golem spawns immediately after placing it.
Crafting ingredient[]
| Name | Ingredients | Crafting recipe |
|---|---|---|
| Anvil | Block of Iron + Iron Ingot |
|
| Iron Ingot | Block of Iron |
Note blocks[]
Blocks of iron can be placed under note blocks to produce iron xylophone sounds.
Sounds[]
| Sound | Subtitles | Source | Description | Resource location | Translation key | Volume | Pitch | Attenuation distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Block broken | Blocks | Once the block has broken | block | subtitles | 1.0 | 1.2 | 16 | |
| Block placed | Blocks | When the block is placed | block | subtitles | 1.0 | 1.2 | 16 | |
| Block breaking | Blocks | While the block is in the process of being broken | block | subtitles | 0.25 | 0.75 | 16 | |
| None[sound 1] | Entity-Dependent | Falling on the block with fall damage | block | None[sound 1] | 0.5 | 1.25 | 16 | |
| Footsteps | Entity-Dependent | Walking on the block | block | subtitles | 0.15 | 1.5 | 16 |
| Sound | Source | Description | Resource location | Volume | Pitch |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blocks | Once the block has broken | dig | 1.0 | 1.1-1.2 | |
| Blocks | When the block is placed | use | 1.0 | 1.2-1.25 | |
| Blocks | While the block is in the process of being broken | hit | 0.3 | 0.75 | |
| Players | Falling on the block with fall damage | fall | 0.4 | 1.0 | |
| Players | Walking on the block | step | 0.35 | 1.0 | |
| Players | Jumping from the block | jump | 0.12 | 1.0 | |
| Players | Falling on the block without fall damage | land | 0.22 | 1.0 |
Data values[]
ID[]
| Name | Identifier | Form | Block tags | Translation key |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Block of Iron | iron_block | Block & Item | beacon_base_blocks mineable/pickaxe needs_stone_tool | block.minecraft.iron_block |
| Name | Identifier | Numeric ID | Form | Item ID[i 1] | Translation key |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Block of Iron | iron_block | 42 | Block & Giveable Item[i 2] | Identical[i 3] | tile.iron_block.name |
Achievements[]
| Icon | Achievement | In-game description | Actual requirements (if different) | Gamerscore earned | Trophy type (PS4) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PS4 | Other | |||||
| Body Guard | Create an Iron Golem | — | 20G | Bronze | ||
Advancements[]
| Icon | Advancement | In-game description | Parent | Actual requirements (if different) | Resource location |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Hired Help | Summon an Iron Golem to help defend a village | What a Deal! | Summon an iron golem. | adventure/summon_iron_golem
|
History[]
| Java Edition Classic | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 21, 2009 | Notch shows interest in adding a "metal block". | ||||
| October 24, 2009 | Notch teased a block of iron. | ||||
| 0.26 SURVIVAL TEST |  Added blocks of iron. | ||||
| Java Edition Indev | |||||
| 0.31 | 20100128 | Iron ore no longer drops iron blocks. | |||
| 20100129 | Blocks of iron can now be crafted from 4 iron ingots. | ||||
| 20100130 | Blocks of iron are now more expensive, requiring 9 iron ingots (3×3) instead of 4 (2×2). | ||||
| ? | ? | Iron blocks can be uncrafted into 9 ingots. | |||
| Java Edition Alpha | |||||
| v1.2.0 | ? |  The texture of blocks of iron has been changed. | |||
| Java Edition Beta | |||||
| 1.2 | The side and bottom textures of blocks of iron have been removed from terrain.png. | ||||
| Java Edition | |||||
| 1.0.0 | Beta 1.9 Prerelease 5 |  The texture of blocks of iron has been changed. | |||
| 1.2.1 | 12w06a | Blocks of iron are now renewable, due to zombies occassionally dropping iron ingots. | |||
| 12w08a | Blocks of iron can be used to make iron golems. | ||||
| 1.4.2 | 12w32a | Blocks of iron can be used to activate a beacon. | |||
| 12w41a | Blocks of iron are now used to craft anvils. | ||||
| 12w42a | A new crafting recipe for anvils call for 3 blocks of iron instead of the original 6. | ||||
| 1.9 | 15w31a | 9 iron blocks generate in the end ships. | |||
| 15w33c | End ships generate with only 8 iron blocks now. | ||||
| 15w41a | End ships no longer generate with iron blocks. | ||||
| July 18, 2017 |  Jeb tweets an image of new textures for iron blocks, obsidian, and birch logs. | ||||
| 1.14 | 18w43a | The texture of blocks of iron has been changed. | |||
| 19w09a | Blocks of iron can now be used to play the xylophone, if they are under note blocks. | ||||
| 1.16.2 | 20w30a | Blocks of iron can now be found in bastion remnant chests. | |||
| Pocket Edition Alpha | |||||
| Pre-release | Added blocks of iron. | ||||
| v0.1.0 | The texture of blocks of iron has been changed. | ||||
| v0.2.0 | The texture of blocks of iron has been changed, once again. | ||||
| v0.12.1 | build 1 | Blocks of iron are now used to craft anvils. | |||
| Blocks of iron can now be used to create iron golems. | |||||
| v0.16.0 | build 4 | Blocks of iron can now be used to activate beacons. | |||
| Bedrock Edition | |||||
| 1.10.0 | beta 1.10.0.3 | The texture of blocks of iron has been changed. | |||
| 1.13.0 | beta 1.13.0.9 | Blocks of iron can now be used to play the xylophone, if they are under note blocks. | |||
| Legacy Console Edition | |||||
| TU1 | CU1 | 1.00 | Patch 1 | 1.0.1 | Added blocks of iron. |
| TU3 | The texture of blocks of iron has been changed. | ||||
| TU14 | 1.05 | Blocks of iron are now used to craft anvils. | |||
| TU19 | CU7 | 1.12 | Blocks of iron can now be used to construct beacon pyramids. | ||
| 1.90 | The texture of blocks of iron has been changed. | ||||
| New Nintendo 3DS Edition | |||||
| 0.1.0 | Added blocks of iron. | ||||
The first image of new textures for iron blocks, obsidian, and birch logs compared to the old ones.
Data history[]
| Java Edition | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.13 | 17w47a | Prior to The Flattening, this block's numeral ID was 42. | |||
Issues[]
Issues relating to "Block of Iron" are maintained on the bug tracker. Report issues there.