X-rays of the sword, which predates the Vikings, revealed its blade is made up of six individual strands of carbonised iron bonded together to form the blade, a practice which has rarely been seen before... The sword was discovered in the first-ever excavation at Bamburgh Castle by the late Dr Brian Hope-Taylor in 1960. Following his death in 2001, the sword was found in a suitcase during a clearance of his house along with a rare pattern-welded sword and an axe also from Bamburgh... A replica sword is being reconstructed which will be displayed at Bamburgh Castle with the original...