Balaur Arms – Bronze Hilt Ballinderry Viking Sword – CLOSEOUT

This Viking sword is based on the famed Ballinderry Viking sword and has a blade of high carbon steel which is tempered and finished with a final blade hardness of 56-58 HRc. The hilt is finely cast from bronze and is prominently etched with the iconic scrollwork design seen on the original. The pommel was constructed in the traditional Viking sword manner by stoutly peening the blade tang to the lower pommel base and then capping it with a hollow pommel cap. Inlaid braided steel wire completes this sword component.

The grip is crafted from hardwood and is tightly bound in leather. The sword comes with a companion scabbard of wood which is overlaid in brown leather and tipped with a riveted chape of copper. A wooden suspension loop sturdily bound to the scabbard in braided leather bands allows for it to be worn with a leather baldric.

One of the finest preserved Viking swords the Ballinderry Sword is immediately recognizable for its scrollwork and vine-like design. The sword was found in Ireland in 1928 among the remains of Irish Crannog. The blade bore an +ULFBERHT+ inscription which denoted it as Frankish blade, but the hilt bore the signature of a Norse craftsman signed ‘HILTIPREHT’.

The Ballinderry Sword belongs to a family of five swords which bear these same markings and similar design, making it likely that they all had the same place of origin despite being found in differing locales. The Vikings had a strong presence in Ireland, and whether the sword ended up there as a result of trade or war is unknown. The sword and its composite manufacture highlights the links of trade and war created by the Vikings, a distance crossed ably by skilled seafarers – for in the case of the Ballinderry sword a Frankish blade was made into a sword by a Norse cutler before finally making its way to Ireland.