The handle of this sword must have been of wood, because it has entirely disappeared, and it must necessarily have been adorned with the two quadrangular golden plates which we see lying, still closely joined together, in the very place where the knob of the handle ought to have been; only on the small side, which is turned towards the spectator, the two plates are slightly disjoined. They are perfectly similar in size and shape to that shown a little later under No. 472;[357] both have exactly the same ornamentation in _repoussé_ work of interwoven spirals; and, as on No. 472, we see in their long sides the marks of a number of small pins, which must have served to attach both plates to a piece of wood which stuck between them, and of which some traces remain. This piece of wood must have been very thin, for otherwise the two plates could not after its disappearance have fallen together so exactly as to appear still joined. Certainly they must have served as ornaments of the sword-handle, but how this was done is altogether inexplicable to me. I find it impossible to suppose that the sword-handle terminated in a thin piece of wood, so as to be fastened between the two plates; besides, this is contradicted by their raised borders. With the two plates was found a bead of amber, the presence of which here must be only accidental, for of course it can have nothing in common with the swords. To one of these swords was doubtless attached the golden tassel represented under No. 461, which I found near them. Probably all these weapons had been suspended on a belt of embroidered work which has disappeared. [Illustration: No. 461. A Gold Sword-tassel. Sepulchre I. Size 5:8.] At a distance of hardly more than one foot to the right of the body I found eleven bronze swords, of which nine had suffered more or less from moisture; but the other two were pretty well preserved. One of them has the enormous length of 3 ft. 2 in., the other of 2 ft. 10 in. With the swords I found the two golden plates represented under No. 462, both of which have belonged to sword-handles; that to the left having been on the upper part of the handle, to which it was attached with no less than twelve gold pins, of which five with large globular heads are still visible. This object is so thickly covered with ashes of the funeral fire that but little of its spiral ornamentation in intaglio can be discerned. The other golden plate has been used as the cover of the wooden sword-handle, and it is perfectly similar to those which we passed in review in describing the discoveries in the fourth tomb (see Nos. 430, 431). [Illustration: No. 462. Golden Covers of Sword-handles, with intaglio ornamentation. Sepulchre I. Size 4:9.] [Sidenote: OBJECTS FOUND WITH THE SWORDS.]