A 1,000-year-old medieval sword in "near perfect" condition has been discovered while dredging a muddy riverbed in Poland.
9th Century AD Sword
Workers discovered the weird oblong metal object earlier this month among the retrieved dirt during dredging operations and felt it had a good possibility of becoming a "national sensation."
The sword believed to be older than Poland was discovered in the depths of the Vistula (sometimes spelled Wisła) River, which runs through Włocławek, a city in northern Poland.
Experts then tentatively dated the sword to approximately the ninth century AD.
"Today, during works restoring the original floor in the marina pool at the street, Piwna was excavated, an object that has a great chance of gaining unique status," the city's Center for Sport and Recreation said on January 12.
The sword's inscriptions read "Ulfberht," a designation found on a set of 170 medieval swords discovered primarily in northern Europe.
Each dates back to the ninth, tenth, or eleventh century, and some scholars believe the word is a Frankish personal name, which could indicate the weapons' origins.
However, much remains unknown about the weaponry and their origins, and not everyone believes the sword previously belonged to the Vikings.
Sambor Gawiński from the Polish conservatory said this is a really valuable find.
He stressed that these so-called Ulfberht swords were produced somewhere in Central Europe, but it's not certain where.
Experts identified the weapon as a "type S" sword, distinguished by its straight metal cross guard that widens at the end.
The amount of carbon steel in the sword made it incredibly powerful and flexible when wielded, according to researchers.
Speculations of Viking Provenance
A previous study has shown that the location where the sword was discovered was part of an important medieval commerce route connecting the city to the Baltic Sea.
However, it is unclear who created the sword, with some speculating that it is of Viking provenance.
While various theories have been put online, experts believe conclusive assertions can only be made after extensive research.
Additionally, during a highway building project in 2007, workers unearthed a neighboring cemetery dating back to the 10th and 11th centuries.
"During research, many artifacts of Scandinavian origin were found, allowing us to assume that in the necropolis people from Scandinavia were buried there, who may have been in the service of the first Piasts, who were establishing their state in this area at that time," said Mateusz Sosnowski, a specialist with Wda Landscape Park who was involved in the sword survey.
However, not everyone involved believes the sword is Viking in origin.
Polish archaeologist Robert Grochowski said that this style of blade is typically referred to as a "viking sword," despite the fact that it was fashioned in what is now France. Many of these weapons were moved to Central Europe via trade, he continued.
Researchers at Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń will continue to research the ancient sword. It will eventually be conserved and displayed at a historical museum in Włocławek.
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