Sword bead

Sword bead on the scabbard of the gold grip spatha from Villingendorf

The sword pearl refers to a pendant with a talisman or amulet function on swords .

Sword beads were made of cut glass , amber or precious stones and some with precious metal mounts. They were either attached directly to the scabbard or the sword hilt or attached to a ribbon. Other theories suggest that sword beads were hanging on a ribbon on the sword hilt in order to be clamped between the fingers as a safety device when wielding the sword.

literature

Joachim Werner : Contributions to the archeology of the Attila empire. CH Beck, Munich 1956, pp. 26-37.

Web links

• Sword bead. Copenhagen, National Museum. Arachne , central object database of the German Archaeological Institute .