Child Finds 1,500-Year-Old Sword in Swedish Lake
Eight-year-old Saga Vanecek was looking for a stone to throw when she found something even better: a 1,500-year-old sword.
Saga was on vacation with her family when she discovered an 85-centimeter-long sword in Lake Vidöstern in southern Sweden.
Saga explains that she likes to walk around in the lake looking for rocks and sticks. "I felt something in the water and lifted it up," she said. "Then there was a handle, and I went to tell my dad that it looked like a sword."
Water levels were low because of record-high summer temperatures, which may have helped uncover the well-preserved relic.
Archaeologists believe that the sword comes from the fifth or sixth century, which is before the Viking era. However, they are not sure why it was in the lake or how it got there.
The sword is now being kept in a local museum. Although Saga found it in July, no one was told until early October while museum officials looked for more relics in the area. They found a brooch from about the same period as the sword, and a coin from the 18th century.
When Saga was finally allowed to tell her story, her teacher and classmates helped her celebrate with an ice-cream party.
Saga’s story reminds many people of the legend of King Arthur, who found the sword Excalibur in a lake in England. Some people have joked that Saga should now become the queen of Sweden.
