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December 28, 2008
Counterfeit Designer Goods, Viking Swords Edition
It must have been an appalling moment when a Viking realised he had paid two cows for a fake designer sword; a clash of blade on blade in battle would have led to his sword, still sharp enough to slice through bone, shattering like glass.
Fascinating stuff - the real Ulfberht swords were made from high carbon steel imported from what is now Iran or Afghanistan; the fakes were made from locally-worked iron. When the trade routes down the Russian rivers closed the fakes took over.
Posted by CrankyProfessor at December 28, 2008 12:25 PM