subject: How Many Different Swords Are There? [print this page] There are several manufacturers around the world that create swords in the modern era from all over the world. In conjunction with this aspect, there are literally thousands, if not millions of these weapons already in existence. It is impossible to determine just how many different ones there are. Each and every sword ever manufactured was produced by a craftsman that established the specifications by which their weapons would be held to. This same process occurs today among the variety of manufacturers and blacksmiths that continue to make these weapons for a variety of different interests.
Some swords being manufactured in the modern era are mass produced cheap, low quality items offered as souvenir or conversation piece. These simulated weapons are designed and developed using modern technology and the blades and accouterments are slapped together in such haphazard fashion they are seldom worth the investment. These items are usually useless for any purpose other than viewing. A sword of this nature has no quality of craftsmanship associated with it. The parts are mass produced with machines and often times assembled by employees of the company with just as shoddy attachment accessories as the parts for the weapon itself.
There are some blacksmiths that continue to manufacture a sword the good old fashioned way. They have a furnace they use to stoke the fires and forge the metal and mold it with a hammer and a splash bucket for cooling. There are not very many of these artisans left in the world and the art of ancient weapons manufacturing is slowly dwindling to the point of being extinct. Each of these craftsmen produces swords according to their own specifications in an attempt to manufacture an item that is as true and lethal as those forged in the fires of ancient antiquity.
The styles and designs that they use to manufacture swords in the modern era replicate a similar aesthetic appeal and feel as the ones that have been made over the centuries. They usually work alone or with a handful of other artisans to produce these weapons in the time honored tradition of their forefathers. Having a sword of this level of quality included in the collection will be a vastly superior addition than ones offered and displayed in retail stores as souvenirs. These items are designed and developed to be actual working tools; however the majority of people that purchase them simply want them as part of their collection, they seldom have the intent of using them for their lethal purpose.
There are also artisans that specialize in the manufacturing of special order swords. Individuals that have a fascination with weaponry often dream up their own idea about a sword they would like to have crafted for them. The blacksmiths that manufacture these items need a simple drawing of the desired aesthetic appeal in order to make the necessary accommodations for producing the piece. These items can be eye candy for a collection or a special piece they want to appear as authentic as possible.
