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Originally Posted by fspic
Well, how restoring doing one side of the blade so it has a representative appearance and leaving the other side as is? At least it cuts work in half. I wouldn't do that with a genuinely historical blade which has a connection with an older historical incident such as an assassination and a resulting uprising.
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Well this is not something i would personally consider. If a blade warrants restoration and can actually be restored (i am not sure there was ever really a shot with this one) then i will either attempt it or not. I see no purpose in restoring half a blade. If restoration cannot be done without damaging the blade then it is not restoration is it, and i see no purpose in damaging a blade in order to make it shinier or prettier for display purposes. As for historical value the trouble is that unless you were there, have undeniable provenance or have a time machine it's impossible to tell exactly what the historical importance is of any blade. Maybe it killed many of the original owners enemies. Maybe it was never even drawn from it's sheath for that purpose. And for me even the personal history of a lowly warrior of seemingly little consequence is "important" in my eye. It doesn't matter if it's actions started revolutions or merely fought in insignificant battles that led to nothing. History is history is history and everyone's part in it collectively is what has led to our present.
We all collect for different reasons and all of them are valid. Some swords can be eye candy for proud display, but it it not what directs me to collect them.