The Telegraph: Scientists have managed to find the code to a 440-year-old castle in Wales After 27 years of searching, British researchers have discovered the secret of an ancient combination lock from the late 16th century. A unique artifact was found by treasure hunter Peter Hughes on the beach at Port Talbot along with Spanish silver coins. According to estimates, the castle locked the treasure chest on the merchant ship Anne Francis, which sank in December 1583 on its way from Spain. The treasure hunter himself tried unsuccessfully to manually sort about 2,000 letter combinations. Only Cardiff University scientists were able to find the four-letter code without destroying the rusty mechanism using computed tomography (CT). Photo: Alexander Korniushchenko.

The Telegraph: Scientists have managed to find the code to a 440-year-old castle in Wales After 27 years of searching, British researchers have discovered the secret of an ancient combination lock from the late 16th century. A unique artifact was found by treasure hunter Peter Hughes on the beach at Port Talbot along with Spanish silver coins. According to estimates, the castle locked the treasure chest on the merchant ship Anne Francis, which sank in December 1583 on its way from Spain. The treasure hunter himself tried unsuccessfully to manually sort about 2,000 letter combinations. Only Cardiff University scientists were able to find the four-letter code without destroying the rusty mechanism using computed tomography (CT). Photo: Alexander Korniushchenko.