I would caution against putting the blade and hilt into a furnace or oven, and even against putting the blade into a furnace or oven, with the hilt outside the heat.
Heating the base of the blade is the usual method to remove a hilt.
A candle or small kerosene lamp is safe, I use a propane torch, but I would not recommend this to anybody who has not had a lot of experience in the use of propane torches. If you hold the blade a few inches down from where the heat is applied to the blade you will easily know when you have heated sufficiently.
Line the jaws of a vice with plenty of newspaper and place the blade into the vice sideways.As already recommended, reheat and try again if you do not succeed the first time, however, you must be aware of the risk that if the tang is heavily rusted, it is possible to break the tang in attempts to remove it, no matter how gentle those attempts may be.
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