Graduate Student Discovers One of World’s Oldest Swords in Mislabeled Monastery

[Imperial Dave]

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/graduate-student-discovers-one-worlds-oldest-swords-mislabeled-monastery-display-180974420/#.Xm_53uYrj5s.twitter

quite the (re)find!

[Tim]

Interesting, beautiful, and dangerous on so many levels...

I also liked the sword.

[Imperial Dave]

 

[Mick Hession]

Interesting. I was unaware that early bronze alloys used arsenic. The bronze smith guild clearly didn't have to worry about pensions for retired members,

Cheers
Mick

[Imperial Dave]

Interesting. I was unaware that early bronze alloys used arsenic. The bronze smith guild clearly didn't have to worry about pensions for retired members,

Cheers
Mick

although presumably they were well protected when visiting certain disreputable establishments....? 

[Andreas Johansson]

Interesting. I was unaware that early bronze alloys used arsenic. The bronze smith guild clearly didn't have to worry about pensions for retired members

Arsenical bronzes were very common in the Early and Middle Bronze Ages, and in some places, like Egypt, remained in use long into the Iron Age. In the northern Andean region they remained in use right up to the Spanish conquest.

It's apparently the case that cultures that develop their metallurgy autonomously always hit on arsenical bronze before tin bronze.