It is obvious to us all now that the light saber Finn has is indeed the same one used by Anakin in ROTS and by Luke in ANH and ESB. All this got me thinking about the role of swords in mythology and how these themes might be carried into The Force Awakens.
What got me really thinking for this blog post is the question of what happened to the famous swords in myth. Are there examples where a sword is passed down through the generations? What happened to them?
This blog post will cover some of the famous swords of mythology and also give a brief summary of where the prominent lightsabers of the first six Star Wars films are located, as far as we know.
Mythic Swords
Excalibur
If you ask someone to name a sword from historical myth, it would be a safe bet that person would name King Arthur's sword, Excalibur, first! I won't take time to recount the stories of King Arthur here since you can find that anywhere. I do want to jump to the end of Arthur's like where he lies dying. He tells his knight, Sir Bedivere, to return the sword to the Lady of the Lake. Bedivere is too enamored with the sword to actually do it, so the first two times he returns to Arthur and lies to him, saying the sword sank into the lake. Arthur, very angry, demands that Bedivere do what he says. On this third attempt, Bedivere does indeed throw the sword into the lake. But the sword does not splash into the water. It is caught in the air by a feminine hands and then disappears under water.
In this case, the sword was meant for one person alone - King Arthur. Once his time was done, it was returned to the being who provided it.
Hrunting
This sword, translated to English as 'thrusting', was the weapon of Beowulf. It was given to him by Unferth, who was a servant to the Danish lord Hrothgar. The sword was known to have great power and claimed to have never failed anyone. However, when Beowulf descended to the bottom of the lake to fight Grendel's mother, the sword's powers failed him and he had to discard it. Why the sword failed has been a topic of scholarly debate for a long time.
Durendal
This is the sword of Charlemagne's paladin Roland. According to the legend, Song of Roland, Charlemagne receives the sword directly from an angel. The hilt is said to contain holy relics such as a tooth of Saint Peter and a piece of rainment from the Virgin Mary. The sword is said to be the sharpest of its kind in the world. Roland uses the weapon to hold off a one hundred thousand strong Muslim army long enough to ensure the safe retreat of Charlemagne's army.
In order to prevent it being captured by the enemy, Roland attempts to destroy it, which created the breach in the Pyrenees mountains you see today. However, the sword proved to be indestructible so he hid it under his body along with the oliphant (the horn used to alert Charlemagne).
Dyrnwyn
This weapon, also known as the sword of Rhydderch Hael, is listed among the Thirteen Treasures of the British Isles that appears in Welsh texts of the 15th and 16th centuries. Dyrnwyn, which is Welsh for "White Hilt" was owned by Rhydderch, who was one of the Three Generous Men of Britain. When the sword is wielded by a worthy or noble-born man, it burns with fire. Rhydderch rarely hesitated in giving the sword to someone (his nickname Hael means "the Generous") but the recipients would always reject it once they learned of its powers.
Fragarach
The sword comes from Irish mythology. It was forged by the gods and was said that no one could tell a lie when Fragarach was held to that person's throat. Hence, it was also known as 'The Answerer'. The sword could summon the power of the wind, could cut through any shield or wall, and produce a piercing wound from which no man could recover.
Here is a case where this magical weapon is handed down to others. It was first wielded by Manannan mac Lir and then it was passed on to his foster son, Lugh. From Lugh, it was given to Cuchulainn and later it passed to Conn of the Hundred Battles.
Jedi Lightsabers: Where Are They Now?
Obi-Wan's 1st Lightsaber
This was last seen plummeting down the shaft at Theed on Naboo. We know, according to the canonical Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated series, that Darth Maul survived the drop and reappeared. So who's to say that lightsaber is lost forever?Obi-Wan's 3rd Lightsaber
I am a little fuzzy about the replacement lightsaber Obi-Wan used after TPM. But, we know that his last lightsaber was left at the feet of Darth Vader in ANH. Would he have destroyed it?Anakin's Last Lightsaber / Luke's 1st Lightsaber
The kid didn't really take care of his lightsabers, so we will just focus on the last one he had when he became Darth Vader. This is the one famously lost in Cloud City on Bespin. This is the one almost assuredly being wielded by Finn in the clip above.Yoda's Lightsaber
The only lightsaber we know Yoda to have used was left in the Senate Chamber on Coruscant after his duel with Darth Sidious. What did the Emperor do with that Jedi weapon?Qui-Gon's Lightsaber
What are the death rites of a Jedi? Was the weapon burned with him on the funeral pyre?
Darth Vader's Lightsaber
It was lost down the Death Star shaft when Luke returned his dad's favor by cutting off his hand in ROTJ. I'd say it is doubtful to have survived the explosion. But, never say never. Perhaps the relic is floating in space, waiting to be claimed by a new dark side disciple.
Mace Windu's Lightsaber
More than likely, Mace's weapon went plummeting down to the surface of Coruscant as the wielder did in ROTS. Did a local Coruscanti stumble across it and make a few bucks off it? Or did the Imperial police track it down and take care of anyone who had it?
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