months, the experts started to form a consensus that the original owner of the sword was Goujian (勾踐), the King of Yue made famous by his perseverance in time of hardship. Construction The sword of Goujian is in length, including an hilt; the blade is wide at its base. The sword weighs . In addition to the repeating dark rhombi pattern on both sides of the blade, there are decorations of blue crystals and turquoise. The grip of the sword is bound by silk, while the pommel is composed of eleven concentric circles. Chemical composition The Sword of Goujian still has a sharp blade and shows no signs of tarnish. To understand why, scientists at Fudan University and CAS used modern equipment to determine the chemical composition of the sword, as shown in the table below. Amount of elements by percentage The body of the blade is mainly made of copper, making it more pliant and less likely to shatter; the edges have more tin content, making them harder and capable of retaining a sharper edge; the sulfur decreases the chance of tarnish in the patterns. It is likely that the chemical composition, along with the almost air-tight scabbard, led to the exceptional state of preservation. Damage While on loan to Singapore for display as part of a cultural exchange exhibition in 1994, a worker accidentally bumped the sword against the case, resulting in a crack on the sword. Since then, China has not allowed the sword to be taken out of the country, and in 2013 officially placed the sword onto the list of Chinese cultural relics forbidden to be exhibited abroad. See also Bell metal Spear of Fuchai, the spear used by Goujian's arch-rival, King Fuchai of Wu Weapons and armor in Chinese mythology References External links Sina.com's collection of stories Archaeological artifacts of China Ancient Chinese swords Yue (state) 1965 archaeological discoveries Individual weapons