Damascus - Sharpest Sword In History

In the course of history, there has been a myth about the existence of a sword capable of cutting rocks in just one stroke. According to a historian and sword expert, Prof Dr. Peter Paufler, there is a sword proven to cut down hard objects in half.

It was a sword once owned by the great Salahuddin Al-Ayubi and the existence of this sword has become one of the most iconic heritage left by the Muslims. The sword was recognized as the sharpest sword in the world ever recorded.

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It was also been agreed upon by a chemist and Nobel prize winner, Robert Curl as well as a few metallurgy experts. Its sharpness is capable of penetrating armor suits, strong shields, other swords, and even hard rocks without leaving any effect or blunting the sword itself.

On top of that, the sword can also cut down silk while it is still in mid-air and this legendary sword was specially made for Salahuddin and was far much superior to the Japanese Katana sword as well as the Excalibur owned by King Arthur.

The genuine sword of Salahuddin Al-Ayubi has its own unique curved shape and it can be differentiated by the flow of water along the sword. What made it interesting is that the pattern is not engraved on the sword but instead it was naturally there during the making process.

With further studies being made on the sword, researchers found that the sword was made using the Damascus metal forging technique which is by inserting carbon nanotubes into the sword making it much sharper and lighter to hold.

The secret to this technique was very impressive and acknowledged by many modern metallurgic experts. In this modern era, there has yet one person who can make a sword incorporated with nanotechnology but it was definitely astonishing how the people in the 11th century managed to pull it off.

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What Are Carbon Nanotubes?

The discovery of carbon nanotubes(CNT) in Salahuddin Al-Ayubi's sword has proven the quality of the forging techniques and advancement in technology during the glory days of Islam 2000 years ago.

CNT is a chain of carbon atoms connected with each other until it forms a hexagonal cylindrical shape with a diameter of 1 to 2 nanometers. This CNT shape can extend until two ends meet.

You can imagine a tube that meets on its end and base. The key benefit of CNT is its strength which is 10 times more than regular metal. Aside from that, nano-carbons can also withstand high temperatures on top of being far lighter than aluminum.

The main element in making a sword through Damascus technology is the fusion of metal known as "wootz". It is a combination of metals with a percentage of different carbons. Aside from that, other elements such as chromium, manganese, and cobalt are mixed together to increase the strength, sharpness, and flexibility of the sword.

A sword with such characteristics has been witnessed under the leadership of Salahuddin Al-Ayubi when he led his army in the crusade war in the 12th century. Not just that, his shield and armor clothing was also specially designed using similar techniques as the sword.

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The secret behind these techniques has remained hidden for so long. The knowledge to create it was only passed down and mastered by small blacksmith families in Damascus. With various new techniques being introduced, this technique has been totally forgotten as time goes by.

It was believed that the technique has come to a halt due to limited resources of the element "wootz" that came specifically from India. What left remains was only the sword and other weapons kept in a museum all over the world.

Until this day, scientists have yet to find the answer behind the quality of Salahuddin Al-Ayubi's sword, and still remains a mystery.

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