The analysis of Indo-Persian armour in the Wallace Collection

Our long-term aim is a detailed study of the Oriental Arms & Armour in the Wallace Collection, London, which contains nearly one thousand items and is one of the most important collections of Indian arms and armour outside the subcontinent.In the collection, there are approximately 200 swords, 20 body armours, 50 helmets and shields of princely quality, and it is fundamental that any analyses are non-invasive.It is our intention to investigate in depth the quality and the kind of steel used for their production, and the different mechanical and thermal processes that were used in their manufacture. We propose to measure a first set of 12 pieces of Indo-Persian armour from the Wallace Collection in order to determine their phase distribution.