Kusanagi: The Sacred Sword of Myth, Magic, and History

The sword of Kusanagi, the storied sword that completes the Imperial Regalia of Japan, is the stuff of ancient history and timeless legends abound by gods, monsters, and the few mortals who dared wield its piercing magic. But is the sword of Kusanagi, its very existence, part of real-life history? Or is this most storied blade fashioned only from tall tales forged brilliantly into an enduring legend? For us to arrive at answers, we must first take our journey back to a much, much earlier point in time. 

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The Imperial Regalia: The Three Great Treasures of Japan

Green Shinto

The Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi, or grass-cutting sword, makes one of the three Imperial Regalia, The Great Treasures of Japan. Along with the Kusanagi sword, the other Regalia objects consist of The Regalia Mirror Yata-no-Kagami and the Regalia Jewel Yasakani-no-Magatama. The Imperial Regalia is said to embody the three primary virtues central to the ancient and now modern Japanese society.  While the Yasakani Jewel embodies benevolence, and the Yata Mirror represents wisdom, the Kusanagi Sword is the very embodiment of valor. 

Ever since the 7th century, the presentation of The Regalia Objects to the Emperor by a priest has been an essential element to the enthronement ceremony. The enthronement ceremony is a highly private tradition in which only the emperor and selected priests have the privilege of actually laying their eyes on the sacred treasures. Two of the three treasures, the Yasakani Jewel and the Kusanagi Sword, were last seen in 1989 during the enthronement ceremony of Emperor Akihito. 

Before it was known as the Kusanagi, the sacred sword carried a different name—Ame-no-Murakumo-no-Tsurugi, which translates to Sword of the Gathering Clouds of Heaven. The legendary sword’s origin is one that extends to an equally legendary battle that went down between the Storm God Susanoo and the eight-headed serpent Yamata-no-Orochi. 

Once in time, according to ancient Japanese lore, there existed a fearsome eight-headed serpent named Yamata-no-Orochi.  For the longest time, the monster-serpent wreaked havoc to the province of Izumo, while it terrorized the province’s ruling Ashinazuchi family. The ruling family had nine daughters, and the serpent having devoured eight of them, was coming for the last Ashinazuchi daughter. Not wanting to lose another daughter, the head of the family sought the help of the then exiled Storm God Susanoo.  

Drachen Wiki

Upon hearing the story, the Storm God Susanoo wasted no time and tracked down and attacked the eight-headed beast. His valiant efforts, however, were in vain. Orochi proved to be a formidable beast, and the Storm God was ultimately forced to retreat. Although defeated at the moment, Susanoo wasted no time as he started to devise his next plan of attack against the serpent Orochi. 

Susanoo’s plan was as cunning as it was simple. The Storm God planned on getting each of Orochi’s eight heads drunk. And so, the Storm God Susanoo went on with the preparations. He had arranged eight giant bowls of sake, Japanese rice wine, to lure out the eight-headed serpent. Orochi took the bait and fell for the trap. 

Intoxicated and asleep, the beast was defenseless when Susanoo attacked, ferociously decapitating each of Orochi’s eight heads. To make certain that Orochi was unable to regenerate and return, Susanoo with his sword chopped off the serpent’s tails. Olden stories have it that it is in one of the Orochi’s tails that Susanoo recovered a second sword, the legendary sword which at the moment he named Ame-no-Murakumo-no-Tsurugi, or Sword of the Gathering Clouds of Heaven. 

Yamato Takeru: The First Kusanagi Swordsman

Wikipedia

The Sun God Susanoo did not keep custody of the Ame-no-Murakumo-no-Tsurugi for very long. Although a god, Susanoo was banished from heaven because of a long-standing quarrel with his sister Ameterasu, Goddess of the Sun. Wanting to make peace with Ameterasu, Susanoo gifted the Sword of Gathering Clouds to her as a peace offering thus ending his long exile. 

Entire generations have come and gone. And many generations soon after, the Sword of Gathering Clouds changed hands once more when the Sun Goddess Ameterasu presented the sword to the great warrior Yamato Takeru, the son of Emperor Keiko—the 12th Emperor of Japan. It was in the hands of Takeru that the sword claimed its present name. It was also in the hands of the great warrior that the Kusanagi extended its existence deep into the imperial line of Japan. 

According to the legend, Takeru first discovered of the sword’s magic during a hunting expedition when a rival warlord lured him onto an open grassland. The warlord had his men shoot flaming arrows, thus setting the grass ablaze, and trapping Takeru in the fiery landscape. 

Moments away from burning to his death, Yamato Takeru drew the Sword of Gathering Clouds. With a series of wild swings, he used it to cut down the grass and clear a path that he can use to escape. Olden stories tell that it was during Takeru’s desperate attempt to escape the fiery grassland that he first discovered the Kusanagi’s magical ability to control the wind. Taking advantage of its new found magic, Takeru used the Sword of Gathering Clouds to gain control of the wind and sweep the great big fire across the landscape to the direction of the rival warlord and his men. 

Celebrating his victory over the treacherous warlord and commemorating his narrow escape from death, Takeru changed the name of the sword from Sword of the Gathering Clouds of Heaven to Grass Cutting Sword—The Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi. At that moment Yamato Takeru became the first man to wield the legendary Kusanagi sword. And since then, the Kusanagi bestowed upon its wielder the supreme power to be most powerful ruler in all of Japan. It is for this very reason that the Kusanagi sword, along with other Regalia Objects, are presented in the enthronement ceremony when a new Japanese Emperor assumes power.  

Historical Accounts of the Kusanagi

Sacred Texts

The earliest mention of the Kusanagi sword appeared in the ancient Japanese text, Kojiki. However, since Kojiki is a collection of Japanese myths, the text in it describing the existence of the Kusanagi is regarded less as a historical account and more as a work of early Japanese fiction. 

The first reliable historical mention of the sword is found in the Nihonshoki. Although parts of this book consist of mythological stories, the Nihonshoki prominently contains sections that recorded real-life historical events that were contemporary to its writing. In the Nihonshoki, it was the written that the Kusanagi was removed from the Imperial Palace in Nara in 668 AD after the sword was suspected to cause Emperor Tenmu’s ill health. Having been removed from the Imperial Palace, the Kusanagi was the sent to the Atsuta Shrine to be safeguarded by Shinto priests. 

Originally built 1900 years ago, the Atsuta Shrine is among the most prominent places of worship from the time of ancient Japan. As the Atsuta Shine underwent major repairs during the Edo period, the Great Grand Shinto priest Matsuoka Masanao claimed that he was able to witness the legendary blade in the flesh. Upon describing the sword, Matsuoka detailed what became the most popular account of the Kusanagi: 

 “A stone box was in the wooden box of length 150 cm, a red earth had been stuffed into a gap, a cored camphor tree log like a box shape was seen in the stone box, and gold was laid out, the sword was placed on it. A red earth was also stuffed between the stone box and the camphor tree box. The sword was about 84 cm long, shaped like calamus, the middle of the sword had a thickness, and from the grip, about 18cm is like a fish spine, fashioned in a white metallic color, and well maintained.” 

Almost immediately after witnessing the Kusanagi, the Great Grand Priest Matsuoka was banished from the Shrine, while several Shinto priests died strange deaths. 

The Tale of the Heike

Artelino

After the sword’s possession by Yamato Takeru, there are few other stories that make prominent mention of past whereabouts of the Kusanagi. In The Tale of the Heike, a 14th-century collection of Japanese epic oral poetry, the Kusanagi sword is said to have been lost at sea following the defeat of the Kusanagi owners Heike clan and the child emperor Antoku in the Naval Battle of Dan-no-Ura. 

In the story, the Emperor's grandmother upon gathering the news of their clan’s defeat led the Emperor and his men to commit suicide by jumping into the waters. It was said that the emperor’s grandmother took with her two of the Three Sacred Treasures—the Regalia Jewel Yasakani-no-Magatama, and the Regalia Sword Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi. The Regalia Mirror, meanwhile, stayed with a lady servant. 

Stories tell that while the Regalia Jewel was salvaged in its casket floating at sea, the Kusanagi Sword was lost forever to the great waters.  The historical reliability of this account, however, is regarded as questionable as the Tale of Heike was written 200 years well after the actual Battle of Dan-no-Ura took place. In those 200 years, more than a few replicas of the Three Sacred Treasures were made and lost when rival members of the royal family soldiered their way into power. It is widely thought that the Imperial Regalia lost in the Battle of Dan-no-Ura were mere replicas, as the original Regalia Objects remained tucked away in the Atsuta Shrine. 

The Kusanagi Today

Smashing Lists

Today, it is believed that the Kusanagi sword remains safeguarded, as it was in the ancient times, well within the walls of the Atsuta Shrine in Nagoya. The sword’s last known appearance in modern history was when it was presented to Emperor Akihito, along with the Regalia Jewel, in his enthronement ceremony in 1989. And even then both imperial objects remained practically unseen as both were shrouded in packages.  

Whether or not the Kusanagi, and the rest of the Imperial Regalia, still exist in their original incarnations can only be the subject of wild and probably endless speculations. Perhaps the only thing that holds some semblance of certainty is that these ancient, sacred relics—part-myth and part-history in their very existence—have shaped Japan in the most real way imaginable. 
 

Tales of Joyeuse: The Sword that Conquered Europe

source: Ancient Origins

Some 1200 years ago, there lived a famous blacksmith named Galas who embarked on a mission of forging the perfect sword. In 802CE, three long years after the blacksmith first set fire to the forge, the very blade that would help conquer Europe was fashioned into existence. 

Fated to rest in the hands of the battle-born King of the Franks, Charlemagne, the sword La Joyeuse would soon command epic tales of conquests, myth, and magic. The history of Charlemagne’s conquest of Europe, for the most part, is a story of Joyeuse. Legend has it that Charlemagne was on his way back from Spain when setting camp in the very region where Galas was working; there the King of the Franks acquired Joyeuse. Charlemagne was known to be especially brutal and ruthless when fighting his battles, and Joyeuse was a weapon that was as glorious and deadly as his reputation.

There exist several accounts that ascribe magical powers to Joyeuse. Legend has it that the sword was forged with the shards of the infamous Lance of Longinus—the very lance that was stabbed into Jesus’ side during the crucifixion. It is said that whenever Charlemagne unsheathed Joyeuse in battle, he revealed a sword that outshone the sun, and left its enemies blind. It is also said that whoever mastered Joyeuse was impregnable to poison. 

The King of the Franks

source: Museum of Artifacts - blogger

Charlemagne, also known as Charles the Great, who lived from 742CE to 814CE was the King of the Franks; the Franks was an ancient kingdom that existed in modern day France. Charlemagne was a central figure to the political, military, and spiritual reshaping of medieval Europe. 

Soon after the fall of the Roman Empire, Charlemagne was responsible for consolidating the powers of Western Europe. He was able to build one of the vastest kingdoms in written history. The King of the Franks ruled over what are now the countries of France, Germany, Italy, Austria, and the Low Countries. In a rather militaristic method, Charlemagne was able to enforce the spread of Christianity throughout the conquered lands of Europe. 

Charlemagne was born in 742CE and was the son of King Pepin the Short. Upon the death of King Pepin, Charlemagne inherited the crown with his brother Carloman.  Unfortunately, after the brothers inherited the throne, Carloman passed away. Charlemagne then became the sole King of the Franks. 

Among the many things that the new king inherited was the responsibility to protect the temporal of the Holy See, the central seat of government of the Catholic Church occupied by the Pope. As a result, Charlemagne became deeply embroiled in wars against adversaries of the church, the most powerful of which were the pagan Lombards and Saxons of Germany. 

Ultimately, the new king was able to prove his military prowess by annihilating the adversaries of the land and the church. In 774CE, with a victory against the Lombards and the Saxons under his belt, the pope declared Charlemagne as the first champion of the Catholic Church. 

The Song of Roland

source:  Marto Deluxe Edition

The next two decades of Charlemagne’s reign were marked by brutal wars waged against the Lombards and Saxons of Germany and the Moors of Spain. In 778CE, Charlemagne launched a campaign against the Moors. It was during this campaign that the legendary Battle of Roncevaux Pass took place. The Battle of Roncevaux Pass was later immortalized in the epic poem Song of Roland, one of the oldest surviving major works of French literature. The 11th-century epic poem mentioned an account of Charlemagne riding into battle with La Joyeuse: 

(Charlemagne) was wearing his fine white coat of mail and his helmet with gold-studded stones; by his side hung Joyeuse, and never was there a sword to match it; its color changed thirty times a day. 

According to the story, it was during the Battle of Roncevaux Pass when Charlemagne momentarily lost Joyeuse. To get his sword back, Charlemagne promised to reward whoever could bring Joyeuse back to him. Eventually, one of Charlemagne’s soldiers found Joyeuse and brought it to him. True to his word, the King of the Franks gifted a generous portion of land to his soldier; Charlemagne planted his sword into the earth as he proclaimed— 

“Here will be built an estate of which you will be the lord and master, and your descendants will take the name of my wonderful sword: Joyeuse.” 

According to the story, this is the origin of the French town Joyeuse which sits in South France.

In 779CE, Charlemagne once again launched a massive military assault against the Saxons; this time, the campaign dealt a rather destructive blow to the King’s adversaries as it yielded the baptism of the Saxon leader in 785CE. 

After securing a lasting victory against the Saxons, Charlemagne’s reign became relatively quiet, except for occasional small-scale revolts and Viking raids. Charlemagne’s accomplishments in defending the Holy See and Western Christendom were eventually recognized in 800CE when the Pope crowned him as the Emperor of the Western Empire. 

As great a king as he was, Charlemagne proved to be an even greater emperor. He was able to bring order to a chaotic empire and set a good example to future kings and emperors. Under his reign, agriculture, trade, and law saw unprecedented leaps forward. 

Safekeeping La Joyeuse

charlemagne's saber - Imperial treasury of vienna 

Historians of today associate two swords to Charlemagne. One of Charlemagne’s swords is a saber; it is currently in the care of Weltliche Schatzkammer (Imperial Treasury) in Vienna, Austria. While the other one is the legendary sword Joyeuse which is currently in the care of the Louvre Museum. 

Joyeuse was transferred into the Louvre in 1793. Before then, the sword was kept originally in a monastery in Saint-Denis, which is a place of burial for French kings. The earliest mention of the sword being kept in the monastery was in 1905; Joyeuse was mentioned in an inventory where it was listed alongside two other royal swords—the swords of Louise IX and Charles VII.  

The sword Joyeuse derives its name from the word “joyful.” Since the 13th century, Joyeuse was featured prominently in coronation rites of rulers of France. The earliest known event when Joyeuse was used at a coronation was in 1270 when of the Duke of Burgundy, Philip the Bold was crowned into power. This was a tradition continued until the coronation rites of Charles X in 1825.

Anatomy of the Sword

source: Medieval Ages-Life in Medieval Times

Today, the once battle-wielded Joyeuse is kept in the Louvre Museum; by this time, the sword has been preserved as a composite of numerous parts added over its long years of service as a coronation regalia. According to the Louvre, the pommel, the cross guard, and the grip had been all been replaced sometime between the 10th and 13th century. And although much of the original steel remains intact to this day, the blade itself had allegedly been refurbished sometime in the 19th century. 

Because it wasn’t being used in battle anymore, Joyeuse had undergone a lot of cosmetic changes to give it a more prestigious look. These ornamentations made Joyeuse representative of a wide range of cosmetic sensibilities from all around Europe throughout different periods in time. 

Joyeuse features two halves of a heavily sculpted gold pommel. The long gold grip measured 4.2 inches and was originally designed with a fleur-de-lis ornamentation within its prominent diamond patterning; fleur-de-lis is a stylized representation of a lily that is most famously recognized as the former royal arms of France. The fleur-de-lis ornamentation, however, was removed for the coronation of Napoleon I in 1804. 

Joyeuse features a gold cross-guard that measures 8.9 inches wide. It sports two winged dragons that are beaded with lapis lazuli eyes. The cross-guard was stamped in the 13th century with the text, “Deux marcs et demi et dix esterlins”; this translates to “two marks and a half and ten sterlings”, which is the weight of the gold. 

Joyeuse features a slender Oakeshott type II blade with a wide and shallow fuller. The blade of Joyeuse runs 32.6 inches long and measures 1.77 inches wide. There are competing schools of thought that offers opposing views on estimated age of the blade. One school of thought believes that the sword, to this very day, features the original blade of Joyeuse that dates back to the Middle Ages; the other suggests that the blade was forged when the sword allegedly got an overhaul in 1804. 

Much like most parts of the sword, the scabbard that originally carried Joyeuse had long undergone various changes. It is very likely that not much of the original scabbard remains except for its belt and the precious stones that were planted on its throat. 

At its present form, the scabbard consists of gilded silver. Its 6-inch throat is covered with purple velvet and ornamented with gold-threaded fleur-de-lis and gems. The velvet and fleurs-de-lis were late additions to the sword; both were added in 1824 for the coronation of Charles X. As for its dimensions, the scabbard has a length of 33 inches and a width of 2.75 inches. A piece of the original belt is still fitted in place, in true medieval fashion, with a gilded buckle. 

Today, Joyeuse remains to be one of the most important swords in all of Europe. Although it has long been removed from the battlefields of yesteryears, Charlemagne’s prized weapon serves as a reminder of prestige and royalty—a surviving testament to the King’s legendary conquests and much storied victories. 

Ancient Viking Sword Used Technology From The Future: The Ulfberht Viking Sword

The Vikings are often portrayed as crude people that should be feared, but in reality, they left behind an important legacy that has resounded throughout history. Among them are the mysterious Uflberht swords – medieval weapons of warfare which were considered to be very advanced for its time. These ancient artifacts have puzzled archaeologists for years, with many wondering about the identity of the people who made them and how the Vikings managed to forge such weapons thousands of years ahead of the technology that would have made creating them possible.

What Are Ulfberht Swords?

The Ulfberht swords are a group of medieval swords found in Europe, and are dated between the 9th and the 11th centuries. These weapons are at the transitional point between the Viking sword and the high medieval knightly sword. They are also considered to be the starting point of the high medieval tradition of inscribing sword blades.  

The blades were inlaid with the inscription of the Ulfberht name and two crosses (+VLFBERHT+), with the name “Ulfberht” believed to be a Frankish personal name that became the basis of a trademark of sorts and was also used by multiple bladesmiths for several centuries. This made the Ulfberht like a medieval luxury brand for swords, as they were of such high quality that some people consider these blades as almost mystical.

Thousands of Ulfberht swords were found across Europe, and most of them were found in rivers or were excavated from Viking burials across Europe and Scandinavia. However, only around 170 swords are proven to be authentic Ulfberht swords. They have been buried for centuries, making these found artifacts only shadows of the ancient masterpieces of weaponry that they once were.

Who Made the Ulfberht Swords?

The Ulfberht swords dominated the battlefield across different parts of Europe. These weapons were attributed to the Vikings and were used by many nations from about 800 to 1100 AD. They were only used by a few select warriors at the time as they were a masterpiece built from pure steel. After this period, the swords disappeared in Europe for at least a thousand years before weapons of this quality surfaced again around the 18th

Why these medieval swords have the inscription of Ulfberht continue to be an enigma until now as the name does not appear in written texts that existed around that time. The fact that the Ulfberht swords appear for over two hundred years is proof that they were not forged by a single craftsman. The name “Ulfberht” could have been the name of the location these weapons were produced, but it could also have been inscribed to the blades as proof of its authenticity. These premium-grade swords were so well-known in European battlefields at the time that hundreds – and maybe even thousands - of imitations of these swords were made, and even these knock-offs were of very good quality as well.

The crosses found in the inscriptions on the Ulfberht swords could suggest that these weapons have a connection with the Roman Catholic Church. This makes sense since the church dominated the Frankish Empire and was also a major producer and dealer of weapons during that time. It was also the practice by bishops and abbots to place the Greek cross before names, so it may also be possible that the Ulfberht name could have been the name of a bishop, abbot or even a monastery. However, many researchers also believe that Ulfberht was one of the most ancient trademarks, serving as sign of high quality weaponry.

Composition & Quality of the Ulfberht Swords

What makes the Ulfberht blades so special is the fact that these blades’ metal was comparable to the strength and quality of modern steel. Most Viking blades and the blades in the rest of Europe made at the time were composed of low-quality steel that could shatter like glass. This is the reason why it is such an enigma how the Ulfberht swords were so advanced when medieval blacksmiths in Europe have yet to possess the knowledge and technology to make weapons as strong, as light and as flexible as the blades that were widely made and could only have existed several centuries later.

To create a sword in the same quality as the Ulfberht blades, the inclusion and distribution of carbon is key. If a sword’s carbon content is not controlled to just the right amount, the sword will either be too soft or too brittle. However, with just the right amount of carbon, this element can significantly strengthen the blade. In fact, the carbon content of Ulfberht swords is about three times higher than that of the bladed weapons around the same time.

Also, in the process of forging iron, the ore has to be liquefied so that the blacksmith could remove the metal’s impurities known as “slag.” To make the ore’s liquefication possible, it must be heated to 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit, which is what is done in modern times. However, what’s interesting about this is that medieval blacksmiths in Europe could not make slag-free steel because their fires were not hot enough to completely liquefy the iron. Instead, in the Viking era, carbon could mainly be introduced through coal in the fire, and the only way to remove the slag from the metal was to just try to hammer out the impurities with every strike.

Theories About the Origins of the Ulfberht Swords

According to the research of Dr. Alan Williams, a consultant archaeometallurgist at the Wallace Collection, who analyzed the Ulfberht swords, the metal used in these ancient weapons is known today as crucible steel. Crucible steel is created by meting iron along with other materials mixed in a crucible and then pouring that molten metal into a mold.

At the time that the Ulfbehrt swords were produced, no one in Europe knew how to melt iron at extreme temperatures for centuries. Crucible steel was not even around the continent until the Industrial Revolution in the 18th century. So, how did the Vikings manage to forge blades that required this advanced technology around a thousand years earlier?

The Vikings were not just excellent and fearless warriors, they were also advanced in a lot of ways so much so that they were also known to be highly skilled traders and navigators. Many artifacts discovered in modern-day Scandinavia have originated from Asia, India and several Eastern parts of the world, which led many experts to believe that the Vikings have managed to somehow reach continents as distant as the Americas and Asia.

Asia was home to the greatest swordsmiths who forged the greatest swords in human history, and one of them incudes the Damascus steel, which was determined to have similar compositions to the metal content of the Ulfberht swords. This has led to one theory that the Ulfberht swords originated from modern-day Iran. Researchers suggest that the Viking acquired the materials they needed to make the Ulfberht swords by trading with merchants back when the Volga Trade route was opened around the same time.

However, another theory suggests that the Ulfberht blades had nothing to do with the steel forged in the Middle East. According to Robert Lehmann, a chemist at the Institute for Inorganic Chemistry at the University of Hannover, the material of the Ulfberht sword they found in 2012 in the Weser River in northwestern Germany does not come from the East. The sword’s blade has a high manganese content while its guard was made from iron with a high arsenic content, both of which suggest that the materials used to make the sword were European in origin. Lehmann traced the origin of the sword to a site in the Taunus region, located north of Frankfurt, Germany – a region where some monasteries were known to have created weapons at the time. It is important to note, however, that the Ulfberht name has not been found in the records of these weapon-making monasteries in the area.

While we may have taken several steps closer to unraveling the mystery behind the Ulfberht swords, it is still a glaring fact that we do not have all the knowledge there is to know about this ancient artifact from the Vikings. Nevertheless, we can say for certain that the Ulfberht swords are important testaments to the legacy that the Vikings have left behind as fearless warriors and as a military force to be reckoned with during what has become known as the Viking age. These special swords also serve as proof of the painstaking lengths taken by great swordsmiths of the time to forge weapons of impressive quality that even modern swordsmiths admit to be a very complicated task though they possess the knowledge and technology that weapon makers of the Viking era did not.

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Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ulfberht_swords
http://www.ancient-origins.net/artifacts-ancient-technology/step-closer-mysterious-origin-viking-sword-ulfberht-002455?nopaging=1
http://www.ancientpages.com/2014/02/11/unravelling-mystery-ulfberht-sword-ancient-viking-artifact-far-ahead-time/
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2878512/The-mystery-magical-superstrong-Viking-sword-Researchers-close-supermonks-believed-forged-weapons.html
http://ancientexplorers.com/blog/ulfberht-the-sword-made-with-tech-from-the-future/
http://www.theepochtimes.com/n3/1134288-a-step-closer-to-the-mysterious-origin-of-the-viking-sword-ulfberht/
http://www.hexapolis.com/2015/05/11/the-curious-case-of-ulfberht-the-viking-sword-with-seemingly-futuristic-technology/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vikings

Goujian - The Ancient Chinese Sword that Defied Time

Over fifty years ago, a rare and unusual sword was found in an ancient tomb in China. This ancient weapon is known as “The Sword of Goujian,” and though it’s supposed to be over 2,000 years old, its blade is said to not have a single trace of rust. The sword’s blade has managed to retain its sharpness, drawing blood when a person’s finger is tested on its edge, as if it was completely immune by the passage of millennia. But aside from this strange quality, its craftsmanship has been praised for being intricately detailed for a sword that was forged in a supposedly technologically-limited era.

Discovery of the Sword of Goujian

The discovery of the Sword of Goujian dates back in 1965, during which an archeological survey was being performance along the second main aqueduct of the Zhang River Reservoir in Jingzhou of Hubei province. More than fifty ancient tombs of the Chu State – a successful hegemonic and expansionist state during the Spring and Autumn Period in the early 8th century BCE -  were found in Juangling County.

And so, an archeological dig was initiated, beginning in the middle of October 1965 and ended in January 1966. In December 1965, 4.3 miles or 7 kilometers from the ruins of Jinan, an ancient capital of Chu, the archeological team responsible for the excavation discovered an ancient tomb. In its casket was a skeleton, and next to it was a near air-tight wooden box. From inside this box, they removed a perfectly preserved bronze sword in its scabbard.

This sword is now identified as the Sword of Goujian, and it was unearthed by these archeological researchers along with 2,000 other artifacts.

To their amazement, upon unsheathing the bronze sword, its blade was revealed to be untarnished. And the fact that the sword appeared to be in perfect condition despite being buried in damp conditions for more than 2,000 years was astonishing. A test conducted by the archaeologists showed that the sword’s blade could easily cut a stack of twenty pieces of paper.

Construction of the Sword of Goujian

The Sword of Goujian is among the earliest known Jian swords. A Jian sword is a double-edged straight sword used during the last 2,500 years in China. Jian swords are among the earliest known sword types in China, and these bladed weapons are closely associated with Chinese mythology. In Chinese folklore, this type of sword is referred to as "The Gentleman of Weapons," and is considered to be one of the four major weapons, along with the staff, spear, and the sabre.

“The Sword of Goujian” is relatively short compared to other historical pieces of its kind. It is a bronze sword with a very high concentration of copper, which made it more malleable and less likely to break apart. The blade’s edges are made of tin, which not only made the sword harder, but also made it more capable of retaining a sharper edge. The sword also contains small amounts of iron, lead and sulfur. The sword’s high proportion of sulfur and sulfide cuprum is revealed to be what gives the weapon its rustproof quality, as sulfur decreases the chance of tarnish in the blade’s patterns.

Weighing 30.9 ounces or 875 grams, the Sword of Goujian measures 21.9 inches or 55.7 centimeters long, including its 3.3.-inch or 8.4-centimeter handle hilt. The blade, on the other hand, is 1.8 inches or 4.6 centimeters wide at its base.

Repeating black rhombic etchings cover both sides of the blade, while blue crystals and turquoise are imbedded on the sword handle.  The grip of the sword is bound by silk while its pommel is composed of 11 concentric circles. 

Inscription on the Sword of Goujian And Subsequent Identification

The owner of this ancient sword was determined through the inscription etched on the its blade. On one side of the blade, eight characters arranged in two columns of text are visible. These characters found near the sword’s hilt are written in an ancient Chinese script known as Bird-worm seal script or “Niǎo Chóng Zhuà”, which literally means “birds and worms characters” because of the writing system’s intricate decoration to the defining strokes. It is a variant of “Zhuan” or seal script, which is very difficult to read. 

Initial analyses deciphered six of the eight characters.  The characters translate to: “King of Yue” ("越王") "made this sword for (his) personal use" ("自作用剑"). According to experts, the remaining two characters are likely to be the name of the king. 

From the sword’s origin in 510 BC to the Yue State’s demise at the hands of Chu in 334 BC, nine kings ruled Yue, including Goujian, Lu Cheng, Bu Shou, and Zhu Gou, among several others. Identifying the correct king that owned the sword sparked debate among archaeologists as well as Chinese language scholars.  Eventually, the experts reached a consensus and decided that the original owner of the sword was Goujian, who reigned between 496 and 465 BC, making the sword around 2,500 years old. 

Goujian was a well-known emperor in Chinese history who reigned over the Yue State during the Spring and Autumn Period. King Goujian’s reign coincided with what is arguably the last major conflict of this period, which is the struggle between the Wu State and the Yue.

The story of King Goujian and Fuchai, King of the Wu state, contending for hegemony is famous throughout China. At some point, Yue was defeated by Wu and Goujian had to serve as Fuchai’s servant for three years before he was allowed to return to his native state. However, after ten years of economic and political reforms, Goujian eventually led his army to victory in the last phase of the war, annexing the rival state.

As a ruler, Goujian never relished in kingly riches, and instead, he ate food suited for peasants and even forced himself to taste bile as a reminder of his humiliations serving under the Wu State. Hence, as a monarch, he was made famous by his perseverance in times of hardship and his ruthlessness during battle.

Unique Properties of the Sword of Goujian

Apart from its historic value, many scholars have wondered how the Sword of Goujian managed to remain rust-free in a humid environment for more than 2,000 years, and how it became possible for it to be as sharp today as when it was originally forged. They were also impressed with the delicate decorations carved into the sword, and by the fact that not a single spot of rust can be found on its body today.

In the hopes of replicating the technology used to create the sword, researchers analyzed ancient bronze shards, and they found that the sword is resistant to oxidation due to sulphation on the sword’s surface. Combined with an air-tight scabbard, this allowed the legendary sword to remain in such pristine condition even after more than two millennia.

The swordsmiths of the Wu and Yue regions in Southern China during the Spring and Autumn Period was also determined to have reached a high level of metallurgy to the point that they were able to incorporate rust-proof alloys into their blades. Their skill in sword-making aided ancient weapons of the time like the Sword of Goujian to survive through the ages relatively unblemished. 

Since its discovery, the Sword of Goujian is regarded as a state treasure in China, and is deemed as a truly legendary sword that defied the rigors of time. This archeological artifact continues to be revered by the Chinese people, much like the fascination over King Arthur’s mythical Excalibur in the West.

The Sword of Goujian was lent to the National Palace Museum in Taipei where it was on display until 2011, along with various other bronze pieces from the 1965 excavation. Presently this archeological artifact is in the possession and care of the Hubei Provincial Museum.

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Sources:

http://www.ancient-origins.net/artifacts-other-artifacts/goujian-ancient-chinese-sword-defied-time-003279?nopaging=1
http://printarchive.epochtimes.com/a1/en/sg/nnn/2015/09%20Sep%202015/516/September_4-17_23_lowres.pdf
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sword_of_Goujian
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_Goujian_of_Yue
https://youtu.be/M6wcFzBTa7Q
http://en.hubei.gov.cn/culture/heritage/201305/t20130521_450099.shtml
http://www.cultural-china.com/chinaWH/html/en/35History618.html
http://mymodernmet.com/sword-of-goujian/
http://en.yibada.com/articles/101006/20160123/goujian-sword-legends.htm
http://historiarex.com/e/en/89-sword-of-goujian

The Legendary Sword in the Stone of Galgano

The story of King Arthur and the Sword in the Stone is one of the most famous British legends. For centuries, this Arthurian story has been passed down from one generation to another through various literary works of authors and poets.

The Sword in the Stone - which some believe to be the same as the world-famous Excalibur - essentially tells the tale of an embedded sword that could only be pulled out from the stone by the one true king of England. The retrieval of the sword was deemed unlikely to be accomplished by any other man until the future King Arthur managed to do the impossible, proving his divine appointment as king and true heir of Uther Pendragon.

However, the story of a mystical sword stuck in a stone is not entirely unique to the well-known Arthurian legend. In fact, a similar yet lesser known story can be found in the Italian region of Tuscany, which some experts have suggested to be the real inspiration behind the British legend. This is the Sword in the Stone of Saint Galgano. And unlike King Arthur’s Excalibur, an actual 12th-century sword believed to be the very same sword that Saint Galgano thrust into the bedrock still exists today.

The Life of Saint Galgano Guidotti

Saint Galgano is considered to be the first saint whose canonization was conducted to a formal process by the Roman Church. Much of his life is known through the documents from the processing of his canonization in 1185, which is just a few years after his demise. There are also a number of written works by later authors that covered the saint’s life.

Galgano Guidotti was born in 1148 in Chiusdino, in the modern province of Siena, Italy. Being the son of a minor noble, he had spent his youth as a wealthy knight, solely concerned with the worldly pleasures that life had to offer. Trained in the art of war, Galgano was both arrogant and violent. However, all of that changed and he later renounced the ideologies of warfare and subsequently chose the path of a hermit.

The Story Behind Galgano’s Legendary Sword in the Stone

source: holiday in tuscany

Saint Galgano’s path to holiness began with a vision of the Archangel Michael - who, incidentally, is often depicted as a warrior saint. According to one version of the legend, the Archangel Michael appeared before Saint Galgano and showed him the path to salvation, with the angel providing him directions to the place where he should go to achieve this.

On the following day, Saint Galgano declared his intention of becoming a hermit and took up residence in a nearby cave, which was met with ridicule from his family and his friends. Dionisia, Galgano’s mother, managed to convince her son to a pay a visit to his fiancee one last time before he completely renounces all worldly pleasures. And so, wearing his expensive nobleman’s clothing, he rode a horse and set out to visit his fiancee. However, on his way there, his horse suddenly reared, throwing him off its back.

Suddenly, Galgano felt an invisible force lift him to his feet, and an irresistible seraphic voice led him to Montesiepi, a hill nearby his home town of Chiusdino. When he reached the foot of the hill, the voice bade Galgano to be still and to look at the top of Montesiepi. There, he saw a vision of a round temple, with the Twelve Apostles surrounding Jesus and Mary. The voice instructed him to climb the hill, and while he was doing so, the vision he saw faded.

Once he reached the top of the hill, he heard the voice speak again, and this time, it commanded him to renounce all of his worldly desires. Saint Galgano, however, objected since the task was easier said than done. He went on to say that to accomplish such a feat was as easy as splitting a rock with a sword - it simply cannot be done.

In order to prove his point, Saint Galgano drew his sword and attempted to thrust it into the rocky ground. To his surprise and amazement, his blade went through the stone with as much ease as a hot knife slicing through butter. Having understood the divine message loud and clear, Galgano permanently resided on Montesiepi as a humble hermit, leading a life in poverty.

While he led a simple and humble life far different from the extravagant lifestyle he once had as a nobleman, Saint Galgano was visited occasionally by peasants, looking for his blessing. He also made friends with the wild animals he lived with.

According to one legend, the Devil once sent an assassin in the guise of a monk to kill Galgano. However, the saint managed to survive the ordeal because the wild wolves he was living with attacked the killer and “gnawed on his bones.”

At the age of 33, Galgano Guidotti met his demise in 1181, and was canonized four years later. His funeral was considered a major event at the time, and was attended by bishops as well as three Cistercian abbots, including one who had lost his way while headed for Rome.

The following year, the Bishop of Volterra placed Montesiepi under the care of Cistercian monks, knowing that they would erect a shrine in Galgano’s memory. They began the construction of a round chapel in 1185, and this became known as the Cappella di Montesiepi. The chapel is located just above the main abbey and houses the legendary sword of Saint Galgano up to this day.

Authenticity of the Sword in the Cappella di Montesiepi

source: delightfully italy

For centuries, the sword in the stone in Montesiepi was widely believed to be a fake except by the most devout. However, research in the 21st century revealed that based on the composition of its metal as well as its style, the sword is indeed from the 12th century.

The sword has a basic design - its pommel is flat and slightly egg-shaped with a truncated form, while its guard is a straight bar of steel - and its style is typically associated to the known weapons of the 12th century.

In 2001, a metal analysis conducted by Luigi Garlaschelli of the University of Pavia revealed that the sword is indeed very old, with no clear proof to support the claims that the sword is a recent fake.

Ground-penetrating radar analysis also revealed a two-meter by 1-meter cavity beneath the sword believed to be a burial recess, which possibly contains Saint Galgano’s body. Meanwhile, carbon-dating confirmed that the two mummified arms housed in the same chapel at Montesiepi were also indeed from the 12th century. This incidentally supports that legend that anyone who attempted to remove the sword from the stone had their arms ripped out from their bodies.

The recent scientific research and evidence proving that the sword as well as the mummified arms in Cappella di Montesiepi have existed around the 12th century may not be full-proof evidence that the sword in the stone is indeed Saint Galgano’s blade, but it does paint a shade of truth to the story.

Saint Galgano’s Sword vs. King Arthur’s Excalibur

source: wikia

There are those who argue that the “Sword in the Stone” legend of King Arthur did not originate from the Celtic fringes of Britain or France but in Italy. The story of Saint Galgano and the sword embedded in a rock in Tuscany bears similar details to the Arthurian legend of Sir Percival, the finder of the Holy Grail.

It is also interesting to note that the the first story mentioning King Arthur pulling a sword from an anvil on top of a stone appeared in one of the poems written by 13th century French poet Robert de Boron, and that these poems were written several decades after Galgano’s canonization by the Roman Church. By that time, word of Saint Galgano’s life may have already travelled across Europe, with the legend of King Arthur and his sword likely to have been inspired by the story of the reformed Italian knight.

Though the two stories share very similar elements, each convey a different message and fulfills a different purpose. The Arthurian legend of the Sword and the Stone is a story that displays the might, glory and mythical qualities of King Arthur to do the impossible, demonstrated by the unlikely retrieval of a sword.  The story of Saint Galgano’s sword, on the other hand, speaks of faith, humility and the path to holiness by doing the opposite - which is thrusting a blade into a rock-solid ground.

Though Saint Galgano Guidotti’s story may just be a curious legend much like the story of King Arthur and the Excalibur, its legacy is far from forgotten. The round temple in Montesiepi is still standing, and is still safekeeping the sword believed to have belonged to Galgano as well as the mummified forearms that supposedly belonged to a man who dared to pull out that very same sword. The walls of the Abbey of San Galgano on Montesiepi are also still standing tall, and has since become a tourist spot for its haunting beauty, history and architecture.  

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Sources:

http://www.ancient-origins.net/artifacts-other-artifacts/legendary-sword-stone-san-galgano-002968?nopaging=1
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2001/sep/16/rorycarroll.theobserver
http://www.atlasobscura.com/places/the-sword-in-the-stone-at-montesiepi-chapel
http://myarmoury.com/feature_stone.html
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/2999894.stm