Note that the seller closed the auction without selling the sword, owing to "an error in the listing." For sure. If this is genuine, it is worth large money and the seller probably realized he was in the wrong venue. There is presently a serious problem with fake medieval swords and one really must examine these swords up close and in person to separate treasure from trash.
Alex's question:
Also, how one can tell of authenticity of a sword like this without physically seeing it (unless it's wootz, of course)? Is it even possible?
My answer:
Very, very rarely one can see a picture and 'know' something is right. I was sent pictures of the Alexandria arsenal sword that came up improperly described at Waddington's in Toronto last year (but with no details on where and when the sale was being held) for my opinion and I was sure enough it was right that I would have have risked significant money on it. But 99% of the time, you must examine up close and in person.
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