Hey Matthew. Well I didn't mean to imply that a sword with an acute point was designed with the intention of penetrating armour. I was thinking more along the lines of thrusting into unprotected gaps.

The point I meant to make (but didn't) is that people often see a blade with a rounded tip and think that it isn't a good design for thrusting. While this might be true if you are trying to thrust into a small gap, a rounded tip is perfectly capable of thrusting into a large target such as an unarmoured torso.

Ah! Gotcha. Yeah, agreed that rounded points aren't made that way for safety, ha!

Matthew

According to this article

https://www.academia.edu/23711389/Hughes_S._2016._In_my_Sword_I_trust_._A_Reassessment_of_Irish_Iron_Age_Swords_With_a_Focus_on_Their_Potential_Use_in_Battle

The vast majority of Irish Iron Age swords had some kind of point on them, which makes the Dangan Lower sword stand out. If it was cut down from another sword, it probably wasn't cut down much because IIRC they never exceed ~18 inches in blade length. It looks like perhaps it could have been shortened and rounded a bit due to the fact that the two fullers extend to the end of the blade. Maybe it had a pointier point which broke and was changed to what would appear to be a more durable design. Personally, I really like the rounded tip, which I imagine would have been effective given the lack of armor in the context of this weapon's use.. although, the article above makes a case for emphasis on the thrust in early Irish warfare involving swords.

Yeah I agree. A broken / reground tip is a likely possibility.