Testing archaeological mail fabrics in a virtual environment: 400 BC – 1000 AD - VIDEO

The video shows ten 3D digital reconstructions of mail fabrics. The finds were reconstructed as part of a research project on computer reconstruction of archaeological mail armour. The developed method allows the physical and mechanical properties of mail artefacts to be reconstructed, which otherwise remain hidden, by performing tests in a virtual environment. The rings were reconstructed by using a set of measurements and connected in a so-called 4-in-1 pattern. Testing procedures were developed to measure the properties of the mail fabrics. A physics engine was employed to simulate the behaviour of the specimens under the influence of external forces. Six important characteristics (i.e. stretch, stiffness, number of rings per unit area, mass per unit area, thickness, and covered area ratio) were calculated and compared to each other to identify distinctive features. The authors of the reconstructions are Martijn A. Wijnhoven (VU University Amsterdam) Aleksei Moskvin (Saint Petersburg State University of Industrial Technologies and Design) and Mariia Moskvina (Saint Petersburg State University of Industrial Technologies and Design) For further details see DOI: