[MR] BBC: Crusader Sword Found off Israeli Coast

[Garth Groff and Sally Sanford]

Noble Friends,

It has been a dry two years for stories of important medieval
archaeological finds, as many digs have been shut down due to the plague.
Now the web is buzzing with the news that a diver found a 900 year-old
"Crusader" sword off Israel's coast.

The sword is substantial, with a blade three feet long, and a hilt
measuring another foot. This puts it in the category of a "great sword".
Details about the weapon, and its true age, have yet to be determined. At
the moment the sword is crusted with all sorts of barnacles and other
marine nasties. It has been taken to the Israeli Antiquity Authority
conservation lab for cleaning and stabilization.

Today you can read the story on two platforms:

The BBC offers a simple news story with some interesting commentary:
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-58963025 .

The History Blog is also reporting the find, with the bonus of a brief
video showing the diver recovering the sword: http://www.thehistoryblog.com
.

Thankfully, the commentators have NOT branded this as a Templar sword . . .
yet. Popular fascination with that order, fueled by so-called "reality" TV
shows, blinds the public to the fact that there were other knights in the
medieval world. Templars made up only a small part of the Crusader armies.
Let's wait to see what the researchers discover. [Although I'm fascinated
by "The Curse of Oak Island", I groan when the show's stars instantly brand
new artifacts as "Templar", followed by the voice-over announcer implying
the speculative assertion is a proven fact.]

Yours Aye,


Lord Mungo Napier, Laird of Mallard Lodge  🦆
(Who thinks wearing a sword is waaay cool, even if it is a nuisance
sometimes)