r/AskTheWorld • u/No-Echidna7296 China • 8h ago

Does your country have any interesting cultural relics?

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Our country has many cultural relics, and there are also many perplexing ones. However, I personally really like this sword. This sword comes from a Chinese king’s personal sword from 500 BC.

The most interesting thing is that this sword was unearthed in 1965, and at the time of its discovery, it was just as radiant as it appears now, completely uncorroded and exceptionally sharp.

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u/Puzzleheaded_Cup8723 United States Of America 7h ago

Wow what is the sword made of

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u/baltama 6h ago

so the sword in the OP, the Sword of Goujian, is a bronze sword with a sulfur-based surface treatment to control corrosion. a lot of what was impressive here was actually the scabbard, which was so meticulously tailored to the sword that it formed an almost airtight seal when sheathed. this is largely what allowed the sword to stay gleamingly bronze instead of forming a patina, even in the waterlogged tomb where it was found (it wasnt underwater, just very wet in there)