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The British Museum [has asked] for help deciphering a medieval sword A sword on display at the British Library has an 800-year-old mystery engraved on its blade.
Dating back to between 1250 and 1330 AD, the sword was discovered in the east of England, in the River Witham near Lincoln, in the 19th century. The sword is a particularly fine double-edged steel weapon of English design. It was most likely forged in Germany and belonged to a wealthy man or a knight. The hilt is cross-shaped, which is normal for swords from this period of the Middle Ages, and is heavy enough to have cloven a man's head in twain if swung with sufficient strength.
But the sword, on loan to the library from the British Museum, does have a couple of highly unusual features. Down the centre of the blade, it has two grooves known as fullers, where most blades only have one. On one side, it also bears an inscription:
It's not the presence of the inscription that has researchers nonplussed, but its content: Experts don't know what the inscription means.
"An intriguing feature of this sword is an as yet indecipherable inscription, found along one of its edges and inlaid in gold wire," wrote curator Julian Harrison on the library's blog. "It has been speculated that this is a religious invocation, since the language is unknown."
The River Witham sword is not unique in this. According to archaeologist Marc van Hasselt of Utrecht University and Hastatus Heritage Consultancy in the Netherlands, inscribed swords were "all the rage" in Europe at the turn of the 13th century, and religious invocations would have made sense. He has studied around a dozen such swords. Most notable was a sword found in Alphen aan den Rijn in the Netherlands, likewise bearing an indecipherable inscription, this time on both sides of the blade:
"There is some debate on the language used in the inscriptions. But looking at the other European finds, it seems most likely that this language is Latin. This makes sense in the context of 13th-century Europe, as Latin was the international language of choice (like English is today)," van Hasselt wrote.
"To elaborate, let's compare the River Witham sword to the sword from Alphen: Both start with some sort of invocation. On the River Witham sword, it is NDXOX, possibly standing for Nostrum Dominus (our Lord) or Nomine Domini (name of the Lord) followed by XOX. On the sword from Alphen, the starting letters read BENEDOXO. Quite likely, this reads as Benedicat (A blessing), followed by OXO. Perhaps these letter combinations -- XOX and OXO -- refer to the Holy Trinity. On the sword from Alphen, one letter combination is then repeated three times: MTINIUSCS, which I interpret as Martinius Sanctus -- Saint Martin. Perhaps a saint is being invoked on the River Witham sword as well?"
Most guesses put forth on the blog post also agree with the idea that it could be Latin, with some readers suggesting the letters, or some of the letters, could be acronyms.
If you want to give it a shot, head on over to the British Library's blog post and post your hypothesis in the comments.
If you want to see the sword itself, it's on display as part of the exhibition Magna Carta: Law, Liberty, Legacy at the British Library in London until September 1.
(Score: 2) by acid andy on Tuesday August 11 2015, @06:24PM
OK, first things first. Just in case anyone else is interested in this playing with this stuff, here's a raw list of those saint names extracted from the Wiki:
Abadiu of Antinoe
Abakuh
Abamun of Tarnut
Saint Phoenix
Abaskhayroun
Abban of Magheranoidhe
Abban of New Ross
Abban the Hermit
Abbo of Fleury
Abdas of Susa
Abel of Reims
Saint Abib
Abo of Tiflis
Abraham the Coptic
Abraham of Rostov
Abraham of Scetes
Abraham of Smolensk
Abraam Bishop of Faiyum
Abraham the Syrian
Abuna Aregawi
Abundius
Acacius of Amida
Acca of Hexham
Achilleus Kewanuka
Adalbert of Prague
Adalgar
Adalgott
Adamo Abate
Adelaide of Italy
Adelaide, Abbess of Vilich
Adelin (Adelhelm) of Séez
Pope Adeodatus I
Adomnán
Pope Adrian III
Afan
Pope Agapitus I
Agapetus of Pechersk
Agatha of Sicily
Agatho of Alexandria
Pope Agatho
Agnes
Agnes
Aidan
Alban
Alberic
Alberic of Utrecht
Alberto Hurtado
Albertus Magnus
Alda
Alcuin
Pope Alexander of Alexandria
Alexandra of Hesse
Alexei of Russia
Alexis Falconieri
Alexis of Wilkes-Barre
Alfred the Great
Alice of Schaerbeek
Alypius the Stylite
Alipy of the Caves
Aloysius Gonzaga
Alphege
Alphonsa Muttathupandathu
Amand
Ambrose of Alexandria
Saint Ammon
Amphilochius of Pochayiv
Anastasius of Alexandria
Andronicus of Alexandria
Pope Anianus
Anastasia of Russia
Anastasius Sinaita
André Bessette
Andrei the Iconographer
Andrew Bobola
Andrew of Constantinople
Andrew of Crete
Andrew Dung-Lac
Angela Merici
Anna
Anne Line
Anselm of Canterbury
Ansgar
Anthony the Great
Anthony of Kiev
Anthony of Padua
Anthony Galvão
Anthony Mary Claret
Antoine Daniel
Saint Aphrodisius
Saint Apollo
Apollonia
Saint Apollos
Saint Aprax
Arnold Janssen
Arnulf of Metz
Athanasius of Alexandria
Augustine of Canterbury
Avitus of Vienne
Avilius of Alexandria
Baldred of Tyninghame
Barbatus of Benevento
Saint Barsanuphius
Basil the Great
Basil the Fool for Christ
Basil of Ostrog
Beatrix d'Este
The Venerable Bede
Benedetta Cambiagio Frassinello
Benedict of Aniane
Benedict of Nursia
Benedict of Jesus
Pope Benedict II
Benedict the Moor
Benedict Joseph Labre
Berlinda of Meerbeke
Bernadette Soubirous
Bernard of Clairvaux
Bernard Due Van Vo
Bernard of Menthon
Bernardo Tolomei
Bernardino of Siena
Birinus
Bonaventure of Bagnoregio
Boniface
Pope Boniface IV
Boris I
Saint Botolph
Brendan of Birr
Brendan the Navigator
Bridget of Sweden
Brigid of Kildare
Brioc
Bruno of Cologne
Bruno of Querfurt
Bruno of Segni
Budoc of Dol
Caesarius of Arles
Cajetan
Camillus de Lellis
Saint Candidus
Canute IV of Denmark
Carantoc
Casimir
Catald
Catherine the Great
Catherine of Bologna
Catherine of Genoa
Catherine Laboure
Catherine of Ricci
Catherine of Siena
Catherine of Vadstena
Cedd
Celadion of Alexandria
Celestine V
Cettin
Chad of Mercia
Charbel
Saint Charles de Chattilon
Charles I of England
Charles of Mount Argus
Christopher
Christina the Astonishing
Chrysanthus
Ciarán of Clonmacnoise
Ciarán of Saighir
Clare of Assisi
Clare of Montefalco
Claudus Corrius II
Clement of Alexandria
Clement of Ohrid
Saint Cleopatra
Clodoald
Clotilde
Colette
Columba
Columbanus
Comgall
Congar
Conrad of Parzham
Conrad of Piacenza
Constantine of Murom
Pope Cosmas
Pope Cosmas II
Pope Cosmas III
Cosmas of Maiuma
Cristóbal Magallanes Jara
Cunigunde of Luxemburg
Cuthbert of Lindisfarne
Cuthbert Mayne
Cynllo
Cyriacus the Anchorite
Cyrus the Coptic
Cyril, teacher of the Slavs
Pope Cyril I the Pillar of Faith
Pope Cyril II
Pope Cyril III
Pope Cyril IV
Pope Cyril V
Pope Cyril VI the Great
King Dagobert II
Damian of Alexandria
Damien of Molokai
Saint Dasya
Saint Daydara
Daniel Comboni
Danilo II
David (Dewi) of Wales
David Lewis
Declan
Pope Demetrius
Saint Demiana the Great
Desiderius of Fontenelle
Desiderius of Vienne
Deusdedit of Canterbury
Didier (Desiderius) of Cahors
Didymus the Blind
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Dimitry of Rostov
Pope Dioscorus
Dionysius of Alexandria
Saint Doherty
Dominic de Guzman
Dominic de la Calzada
Dominic Loricatus
Dominic Savio
Dorothea of Alexandria
Dorotheus of Gaza
Douai Martyrs
Drogo of Sebourg
Dunstan
Dymphna
Eanflæd
Eanswythe of Kent
Edburga of Bicester
Edburga of Minster-in-Thanet
Edith Stein
Editha
Edmund Arrowsmith
Edmund Campion
Edmund of East Anglia
Edward the Confessor
Edward the Martyr
Edwin of Northumbria
Egbert of Northumbria
Eligius
Elisabeth of Hungary
Elizabeth of Portugal
Elizabeth of Russia
Elizabeth Ann Seton
Emeric of Hungary
Emma of Lesum
Emma of Ludger
Emmeram of Regensburg
Emmelia
Enda of Aran
Engelbert of Cologne
Erbin
Erentrude
Ermengol
Ermenilda of Ely
Æthelberht of Kent
Etheldreda of Ely
Pope Eugene I
Eugene de Mazenod
Eulogius of Alexandria
Eulogius of Córdoba
Pope Eumenes
Euphemia
Euphrosyne of Alexandria
Euphrosyne of Polatsk
Eustochia Smeralda Calafato
Euthymius the Great
Eysteinn Erlendsson
Fachanan
Faro
Faustina
Saint Faustus
Feichin
Saint Felix
Pope Felix III
Pope Felix IV
Ferdinand III of Castile
Ferréol of Uzès
Fiacre
Fidelis of Sigmarengen
Filan
Finbarr
Florentina
Franca Visalta
Francesca
Frances Cabrini
Frances of Rome
Francis of Assisi
Francis Caracciolo
Francis of Paola
Francis de Sales
Francis Xavier
Frei Galvão
Frideswide
Fructuosus of Braga
Fulgentius of Cartagena
Pope Gabriel I
Pope Gabriel II
Pope Gabriel III
Pope Gabriel IV
Pope Gabriel V
Pope Gabriel VI
Pope Gabriel VII
Pope Gabriel VIII
Gaetano Errico
Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows
Gal I, Bishop of Clermont
Gall
Saint Gallicanus
Gaspar del Bufalo
Gaudentius of Ossero
Pope Gelasius I
Pope Gelasius II
Gelert
Gemma Galgani
Genesius of Clermont
Genevieve
Saint George the Great
George Preca
St. George El Mozahem
Gerasimus of Jordan
Gerard of Lunel
Saint Gereon
Gerulfus
Gianna Beretta Molla
Ghislain
Saint Gilbert of Sempringham
Gilbert de Moravia
Gilbert of Meaux
Giovanni da Capistrano
Goar of Aquitaine
Godric of Finchale
Gonsalo Garcia
Godehard (Gotthard) of Hildesheim
Gratus of Aosta
Gregorio Barbarigo
Gregory Palamas
Gregory of Tours
Pope Gregory I
Pope Gregory II
Pope Gregory III
Pope Gregory VII
Grellan
Gunther of Bohemia
Saint Guinefort
Hallvard Vebjørnsson
Hedwig of Andechs
Helena of Constantinople
Helena of Skövde
Helier
Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor
Herman of Valaam
Herman of Alaska
Hervé
Pope Hilarius
Hilda of Whitby
Hildebrand
Hildegard of Bingen
Pope Hormisdas
Hubertus
Hugh of Lincoln
Hyacinth
Hyacintha Mariscotti
Ioann of Russia
Illuminata[3]
Ignatius Loyola
Innocent of Alaska
Innocencio of Mary Immaculate
Ignatius of Laconi
Igor of Russia
Irene of Lesvos
Isaac Jogues
Isaac of Nineveh
Isabel of France
Isfrid of Ratzeburg
Isidore of Seville
Isidore the Laborer
Íte of Killeedy
Ivo of Kermartin
Jacobo Kyushei Tomonaga
Jadwiga of Poland
James of the Marches
Jean Vianney
Jean de Brebeuf
Joan of Arc
Joaquina Vedruna de Mas
Job of Pochayiv
Pope John I
Pope John XXIII
John Baptist de La Salle
John Bosco
John Cantius
John Climacus
John of the Cross
John of Damascus
John Fisher
John Macias
John Maron
John of Matha
John of Nepomuk
John Neumann
John Ogilvie
Pope John Paul II
John Rigby
John of Shanghai and San Francisco
John of Tobolsk
John Vianney
Josaphat Kuntsevych
Josemaría Escrivá
Józef Bilczewski
Joseph Freinademetz
Joseph of Cupertino
Joseph Marchand
Joseph Pignatelli
Joseph Vaz
Josephine Bakhita
Josse (Judoc)
Juan Diego
Judoc (Josse)
Juliana of Lazarevo
Juliana of Nicomedia
Julian of Norwich
Juliana Falconieri
Juliana of Cornillon
Julie Billiart
Justin de Jacobis
Jutta of Kulmsee
Kassia
Katharine Drexel
Kea
Kessog
Kevin of Glendalough
Kinga of Poland
Kirill of Beloozero
Konstantin of Russia
Ladislaus of Hungary
Lambert of Maastricht
Laura of Cordoba
Laura of Saint Catherine of Siena
Laurent-Marie-Joseph Imbert
Lawrence
Lazar of Serbia
Leander of Seville
Leo the Great
Pope Leo II
Pope Leo III
Pope Leo IV
Pope Leo IX
Leodegar of Autun
Leopold Mandic
Lidwina of Schiedam
Livinus of Ghent
Lorcán Ua Tuathail
Lorenzo Ruiz
Louis
Louise de Marillac
Lucy Yi Zhenmei
Lucy of Syracuse
Ludolph of Ratzeburg
Luke the Evangelist
Lupus of Sens
Lutgardis
Machar
Magdalen of Canossa
Magdalene of Nagasaki
Malachy
Malo
Marcellin Champagnat
Marcouf
Margaret the Barefooted
Margaret Clitherow
Margaret of Cortona
Margaret of Hungary
Margaret of Scotland (Queen)
Margaret Ward
Marguerite D'Youville
Marguerite Marie Alacoque
Maria Bernarda Bütler
Maria Crocifissa di Rosa
Maria Goretti
Maria Domenica Mazzarello
Maria of Russia
Marianita de Jésus
Marie-Eugénie de Jésus
Mark of Ephesus
Martin de Porres
Pope Martin I
Martyr Saints of China
Martyrs of Thailand
Mary of the Gael
Mary MacKillop
Matthew I of Alexandria
Maurontius of Douai
Maximillian Kolbe
Maximus of Turin
Maximus the Confessor
Maximus the Greek
Methodius equal to the Apostles, teacher of the Slavs
Michael Dinh-Hy Ho
Michael de Sanctis
Miguel Febres Cordero
Milburga of Wenlock
Modwen
Moninne
Mother Maria
Narcisa de Jesus Martillo Moran
Naum of Preslav
Nectan of Hartland
Neot
Nicephorus of Constantinople
Pope Nicholas I
Nicholas of Flüe
Nicholas of Japan
Nicholas of Lesvos
Tsar Nicholas II
Nikola Tavelic
Nikolai of Žica
Nil Sorsky
Nilus the Younger
Nimattullah Kassab Al-Hardini
Noël Chabanel
Norbert of Xanten
Nothelm of Canterbury
Nuno de Santa Maria Álvares Pereira
Odile
Odo of Cluny
Olaf II of Norway
Olga of Kiev
Olga of Russia
Opportuna of Montreuil
Oswald of Northumbria
Osyth
Ouen (Dado)
Oliver Plunkett
Paraskeva the Younger
Pope Paschal I
Paschal Baylon
Patrick
Pope Paul I
Paul Chong Hasang
Paul Miki
Paul of the Cross
Paulina of the Agonizing Heart of Jesus
Paulinus of York
Pavel of Taganrog
Pedro Calungsod
Peregrine Laziosi
Peter the Aleut
Peter Canisius
Peter of Capitolias
Peter Chanel
Peter Claver
Peter Julian Eymard
Petroc
Petrus Canisius
Philip of Agira
Philip Benizi de Damiani
Philothei
Photios of Constantinople
Pierre Borie
Pio of Pietrelcina
Piran
Pope Pius I
Pope Pius V
Pius X
Praejectus
Prætextatus (Bishop of Rouen)
Pyr
Quinidius
Quintian
Rabanus Maurus
Rainerius
Ralph Sherwin
Raphael of Lesvos
Rafqa Pietra Choboq Ar-Rayès
Raphael Kalinowski
Raphael of Brooklyn
Raymond of Penafort
Remigius of Reims (or Remy, Remi)
Remigius of Rouen
René Goupil
Richard of Chichester
Rictrude
Rimbert of Turholt
Rita of Cascia
Robert Bellarmine
Roch
Roger of Cannae
Rognvald Kali Kolsson
Romuald
Roque González de Santa Cruz
Rosalia
Rose of Lima
Rose Venerini
Sabbas the Sanctified
Sadalberga
Saethryth
Salonius
Salvius
Samson of Dol
Sava of Serbia
Scholastica
Seaxburh of Ely
Seraphina
Seraphim of Sarov
Sergei of Russia
Pope Sergius I
Sergius of Valaam
Sergius of Radonezh
Severinus of Noricum
Sharbel Makhluf
Sigeberht of East Anglia
Pope Silverius
Simeon Mirotocivi
Simeon Stylites
Simon the Tanner
Pope Simplicius
Sophia of Slutsk
Sophronius of Jerusalem
Stephen of Hungary
Stephen of Piperi
Stylianos of Paphlagonia
Swithun of Winchester
Symeon Metaphrastes
Symeon the New Theologian
Pope Symmachus
Tekle Haymanot
Tarasios of Constantinople
Tathan
Tatiana of Russia
Teresa of Avila
Teresa de los Andes
Théodore Guérin
Theodore Romzha
Theodore the Studite
Theodosius of Kiev
Theophan the Recluse
Theophanes the Confessor
Therese
Thomas Aquinas
Thomas Becket
Thomas More
Thorlak Thorhallsson (Þorlákur Þórhallsson)
Tikhon of Moscow
Turibius of Mongrovejo
Tydfil
Ubald
Ulrich of Augsburg
Urbicius
Ursicinus of Saint-Ursanne
Ursmar
Ursula Ledóchowska
Varghese Payyappilly Palakkappilly
Varvara Yakovleva
Venantius Fortunatus
Veranus of Cavaillon (Véran)
Veronica of Milan
Vicelinus
Vicente Liem de la Paz
Vincent Ferrer
Vincent de Paul
Vergilius of Salzburg
Virginia Centurione Bracelli
Pope Vitalian
Vietnamese Martyrs
Vitalis of Assisi
Vitonus
Vladimir of Kiev
Vladimir Paley
Waningus
Wenceslaus
Werburgh
Wiborada
Wilfrid of Ripon
Willehad of Bremen
William of Perth
William of York
Willibrord
Wolfeius
Wolfgang of Regensburg
Wolfhelm of Brauweiler
Wulfram of Sens
Xenia the Righteous of Rome
Xenia of Saint Petersburg
Xenophon of Robika
Yaropolk Izyaslavich
Yegor Chekryakovsky
Yrieix
Pope Zachary
Zdislava Berka
Zita
Zofia Szydlowiecka
Zosimas of Palestine
Zygmunt Gorazdowski
If a cat has kittens, does a rat have rittens, a bat bittens and a mat mittens?
(Score: 2) by acid andy on Tuesday August 11 2015, @06:34PM
You know what? Before I extracted the names I should've filtered out all the ones after 1330ish. They could probably do with translating into Latin equivalents as well. Meh this sounds like an awful lot of work. I wonder what's on TV.
If a cat has kittens, does a rat have rittens, a bat bittens and a mat mittens?