Sword collecting is very popular today . The sword collector is fascinated by the history and culture and is willing to spend a lot of money for their collection.
The sword has a hilt, edges for striking and cutting, a point for thrusting and a scabbard that protects the sharp blade. . Originally the length was shorter like daggers they changed through the years as forging and the heating process advanced.
The Bronze Age swords were designed using arsenic copper followed by tin bronze. These swords were approx 60cm as any longer led to bending due to the strength of the metal.
Progress produced longer, stronger more practical blades to be made and Iron Age swords included iron then steel. Early Iron Age Swords produced on a large scale enabled entire armies a supply of metal weapons, These were still not much stronger and harder than the bronze sword though. The Hittites, Mycenaean Greeks and the Proto-Celtic Hallstatt were the main users of the Iron Age sword.
Middle Ages sword styles were fashioned around the different cultural regions such as China, Europe and Japan and by now was a very advanced weapon for combat. The Dao, Tachi and Longswords were examples.
The Middle Ages and Renaissance saw a huge improvement in design and the sword became a very personal weapon.The biggest change was the lengthening of the grip. This enabled two-handed use. The Oriental Samurai Sword Katana and the European Rapier had very ornate hilts.
Samurai swords are amongst the most popular for collectors. Japan was famous for the samurai swords oringinating from around the 13th century. The katana was an infantry weapon, others included were the wakizashi, nodachi, kubikiri, tanto and hachiwara. Tachi and ancient tachi were cavalry swords. The one-handed tachi and tachi are Temple swords.
The purpose of the sword was as a to be a weapon for the battlefield and as times changed and handguns and modern warfare crept in it became redundant and was used only for personal self defense.
Sword collecting became popular in the 19th century and has gained momentum since. Today it is fairly easy to find what you want and to buy swords online, but you need to research the sword collectors license information. There are sword collectors associations you can join and many clubs to find out more.
Replica sword prices vary enormously and depend on quality, age and location . Movies such as Zelda, Kill Bill, The Last Samurai and Lord Of The Rings fire up the interest and many buy the replicas from the film.
If you are an avid sword collector it is possible to find the exact sword of choice and to have the production methods of the original.
