NAVIGATION

For 2000 years bronze was the most advanced metal available and just as copper blades represented a great leap forward from the flint implements of prehistoric times, so the discovery of bronze drove pure copper weapons into obsolescence. Bronze is an alloy, a mixture of copper and tin. A recipe for a good weapon was around nine parts bronze and one part tin. Bronze is harder than copper resulting in stronger weapons that could take a sharp edge better. They could also be made narrower and longer than copper ones. Bronze flowed better than copper into moulds which increased the possibilities for more elaborate designs. Eventually hilts began to be cast in one piece with the blade, eliminating the weak point of a riveted joint between the hilt and blade.