# Scan cracks code of 400-year-old padlock from Tudor shipwreck in Wales

> Museum and university experts have used CT scanning to reveal the four-letter combination of a brass lock recovered from the 1583 wreck of the Ann Francis.

- Published: 2026-11-04 by Tickety-Boo News
- Section: History
- Location: Wales, UK
- Web page: https://ticketyboonews.co.uk/stories/scan-cracks-code-of-400-year-old-padlock-from-tudor-shipwreck-in-wales/
- Original report: [Agor hen glo yn datrys dirgelwch ar ôl 400 mlynedd](https://www.bbc.co.uk/cymrufyw/erthyglau/cm1ex11g4jdgo) (BBC News (Wales))

## In brief

- Experts used a CT scan to reveal the four-letter code, ANCE, of a brass lock over 400 years old.
- The lock came from the Ann Francis, wrecked in a storm in December 1583, and was found near Margam in 1999.
- Museum Wales and Cardiff University cracked it; the collection is on show in Swansea until next summer.

A brass padlock more than 400 years old has finally given up its secret. Experts have worked out its four-letter code with the help of modern scanning technology, solving a puzzle that had defeated its finder for around two decades.

The lock was discovered in the sand near Margam, Port Talbot, in 1999 by a local man with a metal detector, Peter Hughes of Maesteg. It belongs to a wider hoard from the Ann Francis, a ship destroyed in a storm on 28 December 1583 while returning from Spain. It was found close to a cluster of Spanish coins, and it may once have secured a chest holding valuables.

Specialists from Amgueddfa Cymru (Museum Wales) and Cardiff University used a CT scan to peer inside the mechanism and pinpoint the right combination. The code spells ANCE. With four rings carrying six different letters each, there were 1,296 possible combinations, so guesswork was never going to be easy.

Dr David Williams, a research associate in Cardiff University's School of Engineering, admitted he was sceptical when first asked to help. The micro-CT scanner is a smaller-scale cousin of hospital equipment and was not designed for such a task. The first scan revealed letters, much to the team's surprise. The second went badly, but a different approach on the third attempt cracked it, which was no mean feat.

Mr Hughes had spent about 20 years trying to turn the dials himself without success. He said he was delighted that the experts had managed it. He handed the collection to Museum Wales in 2017, and it has been on show this year at Swansea Waterfront Museum.

Curators say the lock is in excellent condition and still works as it would have centuries ago. Because it was found so near the wreck, alongside the rest of the collection, its date can be pinned down precisely. The wider haul includes around 800 silver and gold coins and the personal belongings of the sailors who crewed the ship.

The collection can be seen in Swansea until next summer.

## Why it matters

Everyday objects such as a small lock can reveal as much about the past as coins and gold, showing how people protected their goods and documents. Non-invasive scanning lets museums study fragile artefacts without damaging them, and this case shows how tools built for one job can be turned to another. It also adds detail to the story of Wales in Tudor times, including its trade with Spain.