It sounds like the beginning of a fantasy novel: While skipping rocks in the lake by her family's summer house in Sweden, 8-year-old Saga Vanecek noticed something curious in the water. It looked like a stick, but when she picked it up, she realized it was something special.
"I picked it up and was going to drop it back in the water, but it had a handle, and I saw that it was a little bit pointy at the end and all rusty," Saga told The Local. "I held it up in the air and I said 'Daddy, I found a sword!' When he saw that it bent and was rusty, he came running up and took it."
Thinking the sword might be an authentic relic, Saga's father reported it to authorities. After analyzing the ancient weapon, experts at the Jönköpings Läns Museum believe it's 1,000 to 1,500 years old. That places it in the pre-Viking era. "It's about 85 centimeters long, and there is also preserved wood and metal around it," explained archaeologist Mikael Nordström. "Why it came to be [in Vidöstern Lake], we don't know... It's not every day that one steps on a sword in the lake!"
After searching the area, a team from the museum found a prehistoric brooch from the same time period. But nothing else. Well, maybe the problem is that they didn't take Saga with on their searches. Don't those archaeology nerds read fantasy novels? Saga didn't find the sword; the sword found her, like The One Ring found its Ringbearers in Lord of the Rings, and by pulling it out of the lake she is our new warrior-queen! Huzzah!
At school, Saga shared her story, and man, I'd really hate to have to go after her on Show and Tell. What beats a 1,000-year-old sword? The teachers threw a party to celebrate her newfound fame, and new title as Warrior-Queen of Småland. The kids got to eat ice cream, watch Saga's television interviews, and, best of all, not do any schoolwork. "They thought that it was very fun and interesting to know about my story," said Saga.
Her dad, Andy, was geeking out too. See, the family moved from Minnesota to Sweden in 2007, and, if you're a football fan, that makes Saga's discovery even more awesome."The cool thing is that I'm a huge Minnesota Vikings fan, and this looks just like a Viking sword!" said Andy. "It's cool that it will be in a museum and it might even say 'Saga's sword,' and it might be there for thousands of years."
Congratulations to Saga Minnesotaborn, of the House Vanecek, First of Her Name, the Unwet, Queen of the Småland, and Other Swedish Places With Weird Names, Lil' Khaleesi of the Great Blue Lake, Slayer of Sea Monsters, and Chopper of Pippi Longstocking's Pigstails. Long may you reign.