“The x-ray images confirmed several things that we suspected about the sword, and revealed some interesting features.
“The sword was made by a process called pattern welding, where several bands of metal are beaten together to create a single strengthened blade.
“In this case, three twisted rods of wrought iron with steel surfaces were used, showing as a distinctive pattern on the x-ray image.
“The blade itself was also edged in steel. This is probably because steel can be sharpened to a much finer edge than iron. It is possible to tell the difference between metals on an x-ray image as they corrode in different ways.”
Story: Ben Miller, Culture24 | Photo: Wessex Archaeology
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