Ulfberht Swords on Nova

If you like swords—and what fantasy fan doesn't like swords—there was a great show last night (October 10) on Nova. “Secrets of the Viking Sword” covers the history and unique qualities of the Ulfberht swords. These swords were only made for a couple hundred years and contain a much higher quality steel than most European swords of the Middle Ages. These swords were so valued that archaeologists have discovered knock-offs—the imitators didn't spell the name correctly and used lesser quality materials, kind of like buying a handbag with the name spelled Gucce instead of Gucci. The show also follows the work of a modern-day sword smith who reverse engineers the Ulfberht design, using period techniques to create crucible steel and hammer out the first Ulfberht made in a thousand years.

Check your local listings and set your DVR to record the rebroadcast.

Image Credit: By Ulfberht.jpg: Torana derivative work: Martin Kraft (This file was derived from: Ulfberht.jpg) [CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons.