Distinct Scrap Metal Found in a 1634 Maryland Settlement Used To Be Part of Suit of Armor, X-Ray Analysis Reveals

A flat metal scrap that was buried in a 17-century colonial fort site in Maryland was found to be part of a suit of armor. This was confirmed through X-ray analysis.

Unique Metal Scrap Part of Suit of Armor

Archaeologists found the metal slab while holding excavations in a cellar at the Historic St. Mary's City, which is a Maryland town that European colonists founded in 1634.

Travis Parno, the director of research and collections at the City, explains that at first, it appeared like a small iron piece sticking from the ground. However, as they kept on digging, it appeared larger.

Parno explains that the sight of the X-ray image brought the item back to life. They could see individual steel bands affixed together as well as rivets that decorated the piece.

Though specialists are not sure about who wore the item, they know that the first European colonists brought it to the New World in the mid-1600s. This was when these colonists established the City.

Parno notes that the colonists could have ditched the tasset due to its weight and impracticality in humid and hot conditions.

Other Archaeological Findings

This tasset is just one of the several artifacts that were found as part of a continuing archaeological project that started in 2021. The researchers were also able to unearth some scissors from the 17th century, a decorative braid from metal thread that could have been a coat or globe, and a large building outline that was erected by the settlers briefly after their landing.

Parno notes that the structure outline marks one of the largest buildings from this period that they have found. Considering the time period, it is one of the largest and earliest structures that were ever constructed in colonial Maryland.

Aside from the artifacts, the researchers also discovered a teenager's 400-year-old skeleton last year. This teenager could have been a servant who was indentured.

As for the latest round of excavations, the cellar was the main focal point. Archaeologists believe that this cellar had storage purposes and became a natural trash repository later on.

Parno explains that when the colonists arrived, they needed an area for offloading goods. Hence, they may have built a storehouse as well as a cellar that was immediately adjacent to it. These likely had walls and a roof. Someone may have also chunked the tasset in it, as the tasset was found in the cellar's excavations.

There were also several stone and glass trade beads from Asia and Europe that could have been used for commerce with Native American locals. Parno notes that this suggests a storehouse for the earliest 150 colonists. He notes that the discovery is important and that it may have been one of the first things the colonists did when they went off the boat.

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