Rotisserie spit ,iron rod? Is it OK use a plain iron rod for a Rotisserie spit?

I have a solid piece of iron rod that is about 1/4 inch diameter and from what I can see it has no coatings. It just looks like extruded iron. 

Could this be used as a spit safely? Or should I be using stainless steel?
Stainless steel wasn't invented until 1913. Plain iron then plain steel was used for cooking spits for over 3,000 years and for quite some time after 1913.

It is highly likely that it is safe to use as a spit