X-ray analysis of artifacts from Henry VIII's warship the Mary Rose

The Mary Rose. Credit: Johnny Black

21st century X-ray technology has allowed University of Warwick scientists to peer back through time at the production of the armor worn by the crew of Henry VIII's favored warship, the Mary Rose.

Three artifacts believed to be remains of chainmail recovered from the recovered hull have been analyzed by an international team of scientists led by the Universities of Warwick and Ghent using a state-of-the-art X-ray facility called XMaS (X-ray Materials Science) beamline.

They analyzed three brass links as part of continuing scientific investigations into the artifacts recovered during the excavation of the wreck in the Solent. These links have often been found joined to make a sheet or a chain and are most likely to be from a suit of chainmail armor. By using several X-ray techniques available via the XMaS beamline to examine the surface chemistry of the links, the team were able to peer back through time to the armor's production and reveal that these links were manufactured from an alloy of 73% copper and 27% zinc.

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