Sword Facts
Sword Facts

31 Keen Sword Facts

James Israelsen
By James Israelsen, Associate Writer
Published October 18, 2025
  • Perhaps the most famous of swords is Excalibur, the legendary blade of King Arthur. In some versions of the story, Arthur pulls this sword from the stone. Later poets tell that Arthur received Excalibur from the mystical Lady of the Lake.[9][11]
  • The sword is perhaps the most ubiquitous and multiform weapon in human history.[3][4]
  • The main parts of a basic sword are 1) the blade, 2) the crossguard that sits above the sword's 3) grip, which terminates in the sword's 4) pommel.[3][4]
  • The city of Damascus in ancient Syria was renowned the world over for both its high quality steel and accomplished swordsmiths.[3][4]
  • Gorō Nyūdō Masamune (1264-1343) is the most renowned swordsmith in Japan's history. One of his swords, the "Honjo Masamune" became a symbol of the powerful Tokugaka Shogunate. The sword, a national treasure of Japan, disappeared after WWII.[1]
  • Primitive swords were made of wood and bone, giving way to bronze, and eventually iron and steel.[3]
  • Swords developed from daggers, which are short double-edged blades, unlike a knife which has a single edge.[3]
  • One of the most powerful and coveted weapons in the role-playing game Dungeons and Dragons is the "Vorpal Sword." This legendary weapon will cut the head off of any foe if the player rolls a 20.[16]
  • The knighting ceremonies of Medieval Europe, called "Accolades," culminate in a higher ranking knight, lord, or monarch tapping the knight on each shoulder with the flat of a sword in a tradition called "The Colée."[6]
    • Chivalry Swordsman
    The sword is potent for more than battle
  • A fuller is a channel carved into both sides of the sword's spine. Sometimes called a "blood groove," the fuller actually has nothing to due with blood drainage. The removal of material makes the blade much lighter without sacrificing structural integrity.[3]
  • Zulfiqar is a semi-legendary sword believed to have been given by the prophet Muhammed to his cousin and son-in-law, Ali (ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib). The current location of the sword is not publically known.[1]
  • Medieval Christian knights typically carried cruciform swords. The perpendicular crosshilt offers good hand protection and serves as a crucifix to accompany the knight.[3]
    • One who does not have a sword should sell his cloak and buy one.

    - Jesus of Nazareth; Luke 22:36

  • Famous swords from cinema include the blue lightsaber wielded by Anakin and Luke Skywalker, the sword of the six-fingered man from The Princess Bride, and Aragorn's sword Andúril in The Lord of the Rings.[5]
  • Due to the springiness of their blades, katanas can serve as shields to fend off blows.[13]
  • The earliest metal swords of the ancient world were little more than lengthened daggers of copper. The development of true swords had to wait upon metallurgical development and smithing techniques.[2]
    • Alexander the Great
    Graphic novelist Alan Moore describes Alexander's solution as "lateral thinking:" approaching a problem in an utterly unexpected way
  • After their defeat at the hands of Alexander the Great, the Phyrigians presented the young conqueror with the impossibly tangled "Gordian Knot," which prophecy claimed could only by untangled by Phyrigia's rightful ruler. According to legend, Alexander simply drew his sword and cut the knot in half.[3]
  • The success of the Katana lies in its forging process. Japanese smiths crafted swords with a relatively soft core of low-carbon steel, which gives the sword flexibility. Around this core is forged and hammered a harder, high-carbon outer layer, which gives the sword its razor edge.[10]
  • The first true slashing and stabbing swords date back to roughly the 16th century B.C. near the Black Sea. They were made of bronze, produced by smiths adding tin to their copper. The resultant weapons were stronger and more durable than copper weapons.[2]
  • Through much of history, the ability to bear a sword or other arms was the mark of a free citizen. Slaves and serfs were forbidden the possession or bearing of arms.[3]
    • The history of the sword is the history of humanity.

    - Richard F. Burton

  • Famous swords from video games include the Master Sword from The Legend of Zelda, the giant Buster Sword of Final Fantasy VII's Cloud Strife, Sora's keyblade from Kingdom Hearts, the Halo energy sword, and the Minecraft diamond sword.[5][8]
  • The bronze swords and spearheads spoken of by Homer in the Iliad were comparatively ineffective weapons, as bronze bends and deforms much more easily than iron or steel.[2][3]
  • The Iron Age, lasting rougly from the 12th to the 5th centuries B.C., saw the decline of bronze weapons and the rise first, of work-hardened iron swords, and later, quench-hardened steel swords.[2][3]
  • Famous swords from fantasy literature include Narsil, reforged for Aragorn as Andúril, from The Lord of The Rings, Elric of Melnibone's soul-drinking sword Stormbringer, and Ned Stark's greatsword Ice.[5]
  • Samurai always carried two swords: the katana and the shorter wakizashi.[13]
    • Katana Facts
    The twin Samurai swords were more than weapons: they were marks of nobility and high station
  • Roman soldiers wielded the gladius, a one-handed short sword of iron or steel, equally adapted to stabbing and slicing.[3][12]
  • Fans of comically large swords have estimated the weight of two iconic greatswords: Cloud Strife's "Buster Sword" (FFVII) and the Dragonslayer wielded by Berserk's Guts.  The Buster Sword was estimated to weigh between 30 and 90 lbs; Guts' Dragonslayer came in at a whopping 408 lbs.[7]
  • The best Japanese katanas are made of tamahagane steel, which means "precious steel." The valuable metal is smelted from unique iron sands found in Japan's Shimane Prefecture.[10]
  • In the hands of a skilled Samurai, a well-forged katana can cut a grown man cleanly in half.[13][14]
  • There is no general consensus on how to classify swords according to type, as the weapon has taken so many forms over the centuries. Swords can be classified according to era, material, shape, length, intended use (stabbing vs slashing), and so forth.[3][14]
  • Historical Chinese swords include the jian or straight sword, and the dao, a single-edged curved sword.[2][3]
  • The two most expensive swords ever sold at auction are the 18th Century Chinese Boateng Saber, which sold for $7.7 million in 2008, and the cavalry saber of Napoleon Bonaparte, which sold for $6.4 million in 2007,[15]
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