[Rich Allen]

I just picked up another very odd sword. About 19 ½ inches long, 4.5 lbs, 13 inch blade. Looks to be all handmade, bronze handle, steel blade sharpened on both sides. The blade has a slight wobble to it and appears to have been made of iron. . It’s hard to explain, but if you tap it with another piece of metal, it rings like a bell. Balance point is about ¾ of an inch into the bronze handle. I don’t think this is some repo, truly appears to be very old and not mass produced. Can anyone shed some light on this?

[Mark Moore]

THAT is truly strange. At 4-1/2 pounds, I doubt that it was meant to be a weapon. For some reason--I do not know why--this seems to relate to maritime usage--on a ship at sea. Something to do with securing riggings? I'm stumped. ...McM

[Mikko Kuusirati]

It's a modern decorative thingy. Definitely not a Roman sword, despite the superficial resemblance to a gladius.

Four and a half pounds is WAY too much for a functional weapon of that size, and the hilt is much too ornate in relation to the crudely fashioned blade for it to be a tool of some kind - most of the work put into this thing (such as it is) clearly went towards what the maker thought would look cool. I'm pretty sure that pommel at least was cast from a door knob or curtain rod finial, and the rest of the hilt was probably also molded on assorted architectural decorations. (I assume it's cast in one piece?)

I seriously doubt it's older than a couple of decades, at most.

[Hadrian Coffin]

Hello,

I wouldn't be so sure it is *modern* per say. It is definitely not a Roman piece, but that doesn't mean it is necessarily inauthentic. It looks very much to me like a theatrical sword --19th century.
The patina on the bronze, and the even rust, is consistent with some legitimate age. It is also far too ridiculous/dissimilar from any authentic piece that it really doesn't look like an intentional forgery.

Cheers,
Hadrian

[Matthew Amt]

Yeah, I'd agree that it's some kind of theatrical or decorative piece. Definitely different and interesting!

Matthew

[Mark Moore]

Yes, I agree also, but still....Why build something so heavy for just a 'prop' ? ....McM

[Rich Allen]

You can see why I am confused. It is well balanced and easy to handle, even at that weight. It is quite sharp even it its rusted state. The blade is definitely made of iron, sounds just like a cast iron bell. I think this would be too heavy and dangerous for a prop. As to the casting from modern parts, it may look that way in the photos, but in reality the decorations are very inconsistent. The line widths and angles are all different, the round end is not symmetrical, different sizes. It looks to me like it was carved from clay maybe? Definitely not cast from machine made samples. It looks to me like this was made to punch thru some type of armor. But again, I have no clue!

[Mark Moore]

It's kinda hard to tell from the pics, but is the handle all one solid piece? It looks like it could have been cast from an original that was made from carved wood. ....McM

[Mikko Kuusirati]

[Mark Moore]

You are probably spot-on correct about all of that. My Dad told me that in WW2, lots of the sailors on his ship made their own knives. He said they mostly used cast -aluminum- for the hilts, and some were downright fancy. Others, he said, were fairly crude. I'm just wondering if this is a WW2-era military-made piece. I can't really justify the bronze in that context though...I would figure bronze would have been hard to come by in wartime. And expensive. ....McM

[Matthew Amt]

Right, it's NOT a weapon, nor was it made to punch through armor.

There are literally thousands of over-weight repro "swords" you can buy today, many of them sharp (or sharpenable) and often advertised as "battle-ready" and such. Such things have been available for a couple centuries. Doesn't make them real.

Matthew

[Rich Allen]

[Mark Moore]

Hmmm....just another mystery of life. Stick it in a case and just call it a 'curio'. ....McM

[Ian Hutchison]

I'm going with Victorian prop.

[Rich Allen]

[Sam Barris]

[Matthew Amt]

[Mark Moore]

In my experience, a -weapon- is an object used by one person, usually as offence or defense against another person or other threat...bear, lion, whatever. Almost -anything- can be used as a weapon...it just depends on the intent and skill of usage of the person wielding it. I could attack someone with a rolled-up newspaper and probably do them harm...not that I would do such a stupid thing....just saying. .....McM

[Matthew Amt]

[Mark Moore]

Agreed 100%. .....McM