Viking Sword w/ Silver Decorated Hilt

[Jack Loomes]

In excavated condition, with broad blade cut with a wide shallow fuller over almost its entire length on each face, robust iron hilt comprising thick crosspiece of tapering rectangular section, the inner and outer faces inlaid with silver rows of triangles top and bottom, formed of very fine close-set dot and diamond decoration, framing silver diamonds of contrasting flecked pattern , two-stage pommel inlaid en suite like the cross-piece, and the upper portion of trilobated form decorated with close-set dot and diamond and inlaid in silver .

Total lenght 91 cm
blade 76.5 cm
wide 5.5 cm
Pommel : 6.5 cm x 4 x 1.5 cm

A sword of very similar form was found in a lake near Sørborg Castle, Denmark and is now preserved in the Nationalmuseet, Copenhagen. See I.Peirce 2002, pp.106-107. A further sword with pommel of 'cocked hat' form and inlaid with silver and copper in a closely related decoration style is preserved in the Universitetets Oldsaksamling, Norway, accession C23127, see I.Peirce, op.cit, plate VII. The sword comes with x-rays for authentication

Source: www.antiques.com/dealers/34674/Fine-Art-Ltd