NAILS OF THE ROMAN LEGIONARY AT INCHTUTHIL

Abstract

This study is focused on the nails found at Inchtuthil, Perthshire (UK) dated back to 87 A.D.. The investigated
nails were analyzed to characterize these objects. After the sectioning of the sample, an accurate optical
microscopy examination has been performed in order to study the different structural constituents composing
the microstructure. SEM-EDS analysis allowed to quantitatively characterize the chemical composition of
non-metallic inclusions, while the SEM-EBSD examination revealed the crystallographic textures featuring
the examined alloy. This information, coupled with the measurements of the micro-hardness suggests a new
hypothesis on the plastic deformation process adopted for the realization of the observed nail.