A new king has been named by the Lady of the Lake as a fisherman pulls up a 700-year-old sword. All hail the return of King Arthur.
While fishing in the Vistula River in Poland, the man reeled in the huge 700-year-old sword. It’s remarkably intact and features some truly fascinating symbols and engravings. The local museums are overjoyed with the find. But nobody has announced the naming of the new king yet.
“A medieval sword caught by a fisherman from its stream in Warsaw. The sword is preserved almost the full length, with a characteristic ball head and an intriguing cross sign on the wedge,” the Capital Conservator of Monuments said online.
It was his legal obligation to return the 700-year-old sword to the conservator. However, before he brought it in, he managed to get a few snaps with the relic. It’s a massive, preserved piece of metal, with clear engravings on it. There is no doubt it’s a sword.
Salvaged Sword Undergoes Preservation
Now, the 700-year-old sword pulled up by the fisherman is in the right hands. It is being properly taken care of and placed somewhere it won’t erode further. The organisation in charge of it also plans to clean it up before displaying it.
Their process involved six weeks of bathing in a special solution that removes harmful chloride. After this process, they will rinse until it reaches a neutral pH. Finally, a mechanical cleaning of sand, soil will bring it to its best. It will then be displayed in a museum for all to enjoy.
Anna Magdalena Łań, a specialist in Warsaw, spoke to Fox News about the 700-year-old sword discovery. “The sword is dated to the 13th or 14th century, which is the time when Warsaw was founded,” she began. “A more precise date may be determined thanks to the cross mark, which is the ‘signature’ of the blacksmith who made it.”
She said that, because the 700-year-old sword was found in a river, it has little context. There aren’t more artifacts around it to tell a better story. However, I expect archeologists will be digging through the silt, looking for more now.