[MR] History Blog: “Ulfberht” Sword Found in Norway

[Garth Groff and Sally Sanford]

Noble Friends, Especially Vikings,

A few days ago the History Blog reported on the recent discovery of a
possible "Ulfberht" sword by a farmer working in his fields in Suldal,
Norway.

The sword is actually only half there, being the hilt and the upper part of
the blade. The point end is missing, and was not found in the field. The
piece is heavily corroded, but when experts x-rayed the blade, they found
part of an inscription which may be +VLFBERHT+, making this a very rare and
valuable sword indeed.

Ulfberht swords are believed to have been made in the Rhineland area
sometime between the 9th and 11th centuries. "Ulfberht" is a Frankish name,
and possibly was the swordmaker or his atelier. The weapons were top
quality, and were highly prized by Viking chiefs. Less than 170 Ulfberht
swords are known to have survived.

Or maybe they aren't all Ulfberht swords. Just like Toledo swords, there
are/were authentic high-quality pieces, and as well as shoddy knock-offs (I
own a cheap Toledo sword which was only intended as a wall decoration). I
have read that some Vikings who paid handsomely for an Ulfberht sword found
to their (brief) surprise that they were holding half of a broken fake
during battle.

You can read the story of this particular sword at
https://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/70357 .

More about Ulfberht swords is at
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ulfberht_swords .

Yours Aye,


Mungo Napier, Laird of Mallard Lodge  🦆
Continuing a crusade to keep Merry Rose relevant and in business.