Three-foot-long double-edged blade pulled from the Korte Linschoten River in the Netherlands dates to between A.D. 1050 and 1150. Rijksmuseum van Oudheden (National Museum of Antiquities) in Leiden, Netherlands. [1256×298]

Per Archeology Magazine:

The weapon is noteworthy because of a pair of intricate designs etched into its surface. One side features a “sun wheel,” a circular design divided by a cross that was a sacred symbol in medieval Europe and commonly used in the consecration of churches. The other side is decorated with a geometric pattern consisting of five interlaced squares with a circle. Scholars refer to this emblem as the “endless knot,” a design that was popular in Viking and Germanic cultures and signified unbreakable strength, friendship, and loyalty. Experts who examined the blade did not notice any indications that the sword had been covered by a scabbard at any time. They suggest that the weapon was deliberately thrown into the river as an offering or as a part of some ritual.