The Flyssa

[fearn]

Another neat discussion. Thanks Freebooter.

I have to disagree with Gonzalo, though. The bronze swords didn't disappear hundreds of years ago. What disappeared was the active manufacture and use of such blades. It's pretty easy for a smith to get a look at an old blade and use that as inspiration for his own work. This is especially true for work of more recent origin. Copying is not continuity, even if the people doing the copying are descendents of those who made the originals.

Here's an example: While it's not a weapon tradition, I like Mata Ortiz pottery, of which I have a nice sample. For those who don't know, this pottery is made in northern Mexico by people of Indian descent. It was specifically (and knowingly) inspired by the the ancient pottery designs of the Pueblo tribes in the southwest US in the 20th century, based on designs that archeologists were uncovering in digs of Anasazi and other regions.

Now, a bunch of the "Anasazi" are known to have migrated into Mexico around 1000 years ago, and so it's quite possible that the people of Mata Ortiz are (in part) their descendents. Nonetheless, they did not keep the tradition of Mata Ortiz pottery. They have revived it, based on old samples and modern teaching.

There's no reason that something similar couldn't have happened with the flyssa.

My 0.02 centavos,

F