A rare Viking sword, believed to have been made more than 1,000 years ago, was recently discovered by workmen carrying out work on the Vistula River bed in Poland.
The workers, who were carrying out excavation work and deepening the river bed near the city of Wroclaw, identified in the water an "elongated metal object" that stood out in the mud deposits in the place.
When it became clear that it was an ancient sword of the "Olfbrecht" type, they handed it over to researchers at the Nicolaus Copernicus University in Torun, who determined that it was made around 950 AD.
On the sword is also the ancient and iconic name "Ulfbreht", which indicates that these are extremely rare and expensive swords in Poland, because to date only 8 such swords have been found in Poland, out of 170 found in Europe in total.
The uniqueness of the "Ulfbreht" sword is that the Vikings' opponents did not know how to produce such a strong sword, which has a long and sharp blade, and is also quite flexible.
In fact, at the time, the sword was considered a real breakthrough creation, what's more, it is one of the largest swords ever made, which the Vikings highly valued.
Extremely flexible and sharp.
The rare Viking sword, photo: from the Facebook page Ośrodek Sportu i Rekreacji Włocławek
According to Sambor Gawinski from the Polish Ministry of Conservation, this is a very valuable sword.
"What we know about them is the fact that they were produced in Central Europe, but we do not know the exact location where the factory that produced them was located," he said.
The expert added and explained that "the sword was produced in a very unique method using carbon steel (adding carbon to steel creates a stronger and more flexible metal, AG).
The amount added to the steel was very precise, and the entire production was meticulous and special, so that a very strong and flexible sword was created.
An expression of its uniqueness is, among other things, the fact that the sword lay in the drift for more than 1,000 years, yet it was preserved in excellent condition."
The association of the sword with the Vikings is based on the fact that about 40 swords of this type were previously found in Norway, which indicates that they were widely used among these warriors.
However, Gavinski noted that "we have to wait for more in-depth research to know who the sword belonged to."
A groundbreaking work. The Viking sword in the background of the river where it was found // Photo: from the Facebook page Ośrodek Sportu i Rekreacji Włocławek
The mystery behind the sword
One of the interesting questions regarding the "Ulfbreht" type swords is related to the fact that the technology for producing this type of steel was known only in the Middle East, and it reached Europe hundreds of years later, around 1,000 AD.
According to the researchers, one of the possibilities that the Vikings knew how to make such a sword stems from the fact that they were excellent sailors, who reached the Middle East - and even Iran - on their tours.
Evidence of this was found in the graves of these warriors in the form of Middle Eastern objects.
It is assumed that on those tours the Vikings met the steel, known as Damascus steel, which was produced in the mines and which was very similar to the steel of the "Olfbreht" swords.
Therefore, it is very possible that in the trade that took place between these sailors with the people of the Middle East, they bought such steel - and even learned to use it.
This is probably also the reason why such swords are not found from the 11th century onwards, because then the routes to the Middle East were blocked.
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