Rocamadour/France: An ancient sword that had remained lodged in a rock for 1,300 years in the medieval town of Rocamadour in southwestern France ‘mysteriously’ vanished, New York Post reported.
Locals, who are devastated by the Durandal sword’s disappearance, believe that it was taken away by some thief.
Described as the French version of King Arthur’s legendary ‘Excalibur’, the sword is believed to be belonging to French emperor Charlemagne’s legendary knight Roland.
Officials have now started a probe into the sword’s disappearance after it appeared to be yanked from the cliff wall some 100 feet off the ground.
The legend has it that Durandal could cut through stone in a single blow as it was indestructible and sharpest in the world.
The 11th-century epic poem “The Song of Roland”, written in old French, recorded the ‘magical’ attributes of the sword.
A sole copy of this oldest surviving work of French literature is stashed at the Bodleian Library in Oxford.
Charlemagne, who received Durandal from an angel, gifted it to Roland who fought for the emperor in the eighth century.
Before his death in the battlefield, Roland who was unable to break the sword, threw it into the air to stop it from reaching in the hands of enemies.
The sword travelled miles before landing in the cliff in Rocamadour where it stayed until its disappearance, according to legend.
Mayor Dominique Lenfant was quoted as saying: ”We’re going to miss Durandal. It’s been part of Rocamadour for centuries, and there’s not a guide who doesn’t point it out when he visits.”
“Rocamadour feels it’s been robbed of a part of itself, but even if it’s a legend, the destinies of our village and this sword are entwined,” she reportedly added.
Police are probing the mystery of how someone could remove the sword climbing 100 feet off the ground.