Physicists have unraveled the secret of 16th century metalworking technique

Video: Physicists have unraveled the secret of 16th century metalworking technique

2024 Author: Seth Attwood | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 15:55

Physicists at Imperial College London examined a 16th-century blued knight's glove using the method used to study solar panels. The results of the work told about a rare metalworking method. Details of the study are available on the college website.

Medieval craftsmen used various methods to prevent corrosion of steel, some of which gave the metal a dark blue hue. To find out exactly how the craftsmen managed to achieve this color, scientists examined a 16th century knight's glove from the Wallace Collection.

Physicists used a technique called spectroscopic ellipsometry. With this method, specialists study the reflection of light from the surface of a material.

“We typically use spectroscopic ellipsometry to examine films deposited on the surface of solar panels. If the film helps the panels reflect fewer wavelengths of light, then more light and more energy can be collected. In this case, we were interested in how a thin blue film reacts to light,”said study author Alex Mellor.

The preliminary results of the study showed that the glove was heated to 250 ° C during the manufacturing process, which caused it to acquire a dark blue color. In addition, this color was a by-product of gilding.

“The gilding process consists of chemical etching followed by layers of copper and gold amalgam, which, when heated, attaches the gold to the surface, and the toxic mercury disappears. During such heating, the glove could turn dark blue,”Mellor explained.

The complete set of armor to which the glove belongs was made for Lord Buckhurst in 1587 at the Royal Greenwich Armories.

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