Although it initially looked like a piece of rebar, Andrzej Korpikiewicz cleaned it of the leeches, snails and shrimp that had stuck to it and discovered a sword.
Warsaw Monuments Restorer/FacebookAround the middle of the hilt, the sword has a cross-shaped design.
“At that moment, I realized that this would probably be a more interesting find, and I immediately thought that I should give it to those who know more about such items,” Korpikevich told Polish news outlet TVP World.
The only problem was that he got to the river on an electric scooter and couldn't transport the artifact safely, so Korpikevich hid the sword in the grass nearby and later returned in his car.
Before transporting the sword, however, Korpikevich called a friend who was a metal detectorist and knew how to care for historical relics. The friend told him that the sword should be kept damp to prevent damage.
So Korpikiewicz wrapped the sword in T-shirts soaked in river water and hid it in his car. The next day, he and his wife delivered it to the office of Warsaw monument restorer Michal Krasucki.
“We were (greeted) with great surprise and excitement,” Korpikevich said. “People have been looking for things like this for years, but I stumbled upon it completely by accident.”
Preserving a Medieval Wonder Found by Andrzej Korpikiewicz
Sourse: www.allthatsinteresting.com
