Posted on 03/01/2020 5:36:47 PM PST by SunkenCiv
A 5,000 year-old sword, among the oldest Anatolian weapons in the world, was discovered by a PhD student at the University Ca' Foscari in Venice, Vittoria Dall'Armellina, in a monastery on the island of San Lazzaro degli Armeni in the Lagoon City. The weapon is at the museum of San Lazzaro. It is a small sword, located in a window together with Medieval objects. The sword however is very similar to 5,000-year-old weapons discovered inside the Royal palace in Arslantepe, eastern Anatolia, believed to be the most ancient in the world.
The museum of Tokat (Turkey) had a similar sword from the region of Sivas, which is extremely similar to the one in San Lazzaro...
The sword arrived from Trabzon to Venice, donated by an art merchant and collector, Yervant Khorasandjian, in the mid-1800s, according to an envelope. It was found with other objects in an area called Kavak. Ghevond Alishan, a famous poet and writer who was friends with John Ruskin, a monk with the congregation and a researcher, died in Venice in 1901. It is thougth therefore that this episode dates back to the last decades of the 19th century. The analysis on the metal's composition has been carried out in collaboration with Professor Ivana Angelini and (Centro Interdipartimentale di Ricerca Studio e Conservazione dei Beni Archeologici, Architettonici e Storico-Artistici) Ciba at the University of Padua.
The sword is made of a type of copper and tin frequently used before the Bronze age. This data and the marked similarity with twin swords in Arslantepe, allowed to date it between the end of the 6th and start of the 3rd millennium BC and to confirm that it was a very rare type.
(Excerpt) Read more at ansamed.info ...
My pleasure.
It's not significantly shorter than the Greek xiphos or the Roman gladius. Used as a thrusting weapon and combined with a shield, empires were built on that sword.
The Greek and Roman swords were almost twice as long and much wider as the exhibit. That makes them heavier and stronger. Yes, a well equipped army with interlocking shields could almost overcome anything. I’d still classify the exhibit as a dagger.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.