Notable Weapons

Hrunting
The sword gifted to Beowulf by Unferth in ft. XXI. it is described as"iron, etched with poison stripes,""hardened with the blood of war; it had never failed""any man who grasped it in his hands in battle,""who dared to undertake a dreadful journey""into the very home of the foe — it was not the first time""that it had to perform a work of high courage."The sword is given to Beowulf so he may slay Grendel's mother with it, but in the actual battle during which he uses the sword, it is unable to damage her in any way: "he gave a mighty blow/with his battle-sword... [and] discovered then/that the battle-flame would not bite/or wound her fatally" (ll. 1520, 1522-24). It has been postulated that Unferth gifted this sword to Beowulf in spite, knowing it would not work. However, when Beowulf returns the useless sword to Unferth in ft. XXV, he "thank[s] him for the loan,/and sa[ys] that he regarded it as a good war-friend,/skillful in battle" (ll. 1809-12) and does not criticize the sword's inability to function.

"A victorious blade"
The un-named sword which Beowulf uses to slay Grendel's mother.

It is discovered during his fight, lying in a pile of discarded armor that had been left in the grotto. "it was the best of weapons,""except that it was greater than any other man""might even bear into the play of battle,""good, adorned, the work of giants. (ll. 1559-62)"After the sword is used to kill Grendel's mother and to decapitate them both, the blade dissolves due to the "ho...blood/of the poisonous alien spirit who had died in there" (ll. 1616-17). Described as "ring-marked" (l. 1563), the sword's hilt is later presented to Hrothgar in ft. XXIV and upon his examination is seen to have been marked with runes and "serpentine patterns" (l. 1698).

Naegling
The sword used by Beowulf during his battle with the dragon in ft. XXXVI. It had been gifted to him by Onela many years earlier, but during the battle with the dragon, "Naegling shattered —/the sword of Beowulf weakened at battle" (ll. 2680-81), "overtaxed [by]/[Beowulf's] mighty blows" (ll. 2684-85).