Real-life Excalibur?Man on a hike uncovers gold sword relic hidden under tree

A discovery reminiscent of King Arthur legends has emerged in Norway, where a gold sword fitting that dates back 1,500 years was recently uncovered by a hiker.(Annette Græsli Øvrelid/Museum of Archaeology, UStavanger/Cover Images;Transcendental Graphics/Getty Images)

“I saw a slight rise in the soil under the tree and poked at it with a stick,” he said, according to the release.

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“Suddenly I saw something gleaming.I didn’t quite understand what I had found.”

Unlike King Arthur and Excalibur, the find was only a small gold sword fitting, measuring about six centimeters wide.

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“You are completely taken by surprise when finds like this appear.”

Still, officials emphasized its importance.

They noted that the sword “likelybelonged to a chieftainwho ruled at Hove.”

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“It is richly decorated and would have adorned a scabbard worn on a belt, from which the sword hung,” the release noted.

“This is the first time such a find has been made in Rogaland, and only 17 others have been found in Northern Europe so far.”

Officials say the rare gold artifact likely belonged to a regional chieftain.(Annette Græsli Øvrelid/Museum of Archaeology, UStavanger/Cover Images)

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Archaeologist and university professor Håkon Reiersen called the find “spectacular.”

“At that time there were crop failures and crisis, and people likely deposited valuable objects as offerings in hopes of better times.”

The professor said the sword’s owner “was likely the leader in this area in the first half of the sixth century, with aretinue of loyal warriors.”

He added, “Gold scabbard fittings usually show little sign of use, but this one is worn and well used, which suggests the chieftain actually used it a great deal.It emphasized his position and power.”

Researchers, seen above, say the find adds valuable context to the study of leadership and power in early Norway. (Annette Græsli Øvrelid/Museum of Archaeology, UStavanger/Cover Images)

“At that time, there were crop failures and crisis, and people likely deposited valuable objects as offerings in hopes of better times,” officials said.

The artifact is now slated to be put on display at theMuseum of Archaeologyat the University of Stavanger.

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Kristin Armstrong-Oma, the director of the museum and a professor, said she “extend[s] a big thank you to a very observant hiker.”

The small gold fitting measures about six centimeters wide and once adorned a sword scabbard.(Annette Græsli Øvrelid/Museum of Archaeology, UStavanger/Cover Images)

“[The hiker gave] us a new puzzle piece connected to the power center at Hove during the Migration Period,” said Armstrong-Oma.

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“At the museum we have some of the world’s leading researchers on such objects, which allows us to continue studying the find itself and its ornamentation and to discover new answers about the elite who ruled here at that time.”

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She added, “This find will be made available to the public, so people can see it andshare in the gold feverwith us.”