I'd like to share with you a few images of Viking swords displayed in Russian museums.

Swords from Chernaya Mogila (Black Grave) burial mound (Chernigov, Ukraine):

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Sword from Mikhailovskoye (Yaroslavl, Russia), burial mound 1, excavations by V. Gorodtsov, 1901:

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Ulfberht sword displayed in Novgorod State Historical Museum:

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Sword from Gulbishche burial mound (Chernigov, Ukraine), grave of a warrior (cremation). Full length 125 cm, blade length 105 cm. Thus it is the longest sword in Europe of the period.

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Gnezdovo (Smolensk, Russia). Burial mound 4, cremation. Ulfberht sword:

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Those are great pictures, thanks for sharing them. I really like that second picture...the engraving/design work on the pommel and guard are utterly fantastic. Love that sword.

Thank you for sharing these with us. I too like the sword in the second picture. I wonder what the upper pommel piece was shaped like? Spectacular piece.

Another photo of the sword from Mikhailovskoye.

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Seems to me like either somebody had flipped over the tang of the Ulfberht sword's blade or it has been flipped over following its discovery.

Actually, bending the sword as part of a burial is an ancient costum that dates back to the bronze age in Scandinavia. In order for the sword to follow its' owner into the next world, the sword also had to die, since nothing living can pass into the realm of the dead. The bending is a way to ritually kill the sword, allowing its' master to use it in the next life.

If the whole thing had been ceremonially 'killed', one would expect the bend to cover a little more of the blade rather than this abrupt right-angle bend short of the lower guard. In the original post there's an excellent example, one that's bent in a semi-circle. I can see this particular one being an accidental bend during excavation or discovery-- someone trips over a bit of metal poking out of the ground, they take a closer look and it's a whole bloomin' sword.

This is somewhat of an aside, but I thought that the ceremonial 'killing' of weapons was a late Iron Age thing, not so much Viking Period? Enlightenment is appreciated :)

Many viking age swords were obviously ritually killed. I agree though that this one looks to be damaged by accident...

THANK YOU VICTOR

Here is a link to a full-length pic I found of the Gulbishche sword. http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8052/8448799464_20a339f0f3_h.jpg Very interesting sword, thank you for posting. I wonder if Kirpichnikov covers this one?

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This is somewhat of an aside, but I thought that the ceremonial 'killing' of weapons was a late Iron Age thing, not so much Viking Period? Enlightenment is appreciated :)[/quote]

Ritual bending is often found in context with fire burials. In later burials, particularly the unburnt chamber graves of Birka, the sword is put in the grave undamaged. This suggests, as you say, that the sword-killing, together with fire burials, is a remnant of a much older tradition. The sword killing itself dates back to the bronze age.

The Gulbishche sword is indeed covered in Kirpichnikov. Close inspection of the photo shows that the guards are decorated with numerous pits, making this one a type E rather than a D.

Items from the State Historical Museum in Moscow, Russia.

The Black Grave pair of swords from different angles:

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Unidentified swords, including a ritually killed one:

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Maybe I'm being a trifle cynical - but there is a tendency in archaeology to label anything that doesn't have an immediately obvious use or explanation as "Ritual" , at least until a more rational reason comes along with further study. There could be a very "practical' reason for bending swords before including them in their owner's graves. They were , at the time, valuable items of the owners that the family decided should accompany him in death. What better way to ensure that said sword STAYED with the owner and wasn't dug up at a later date by a thief than to bend it all out of shape and therefore render the sword useless as a weapon ? It's one *possible* explanation :)

Robin, I see what you mean. Thank you for pointing that out.

Edit: Robin, I was confused, I was talking about the Gulbische sword being a type E, while the original question you answered was about the Mikhailovskoye sword, which does indeed look like an a typical D to me as well.. What is your opinion on the Gulbische sword?