After returning to his home near Birmingham, England, he began to research his purchase. Etched into the blade were the initials "FFM" and the name of a British army regiment, the East Kent. But the best indicator to its provenance was a serial number on the blade made by the London swordsmith, Wilkinson. With this number, Withers was able to inquire about the sword’s history from a company that keeps an archive of all purchasers of its swords dating back to the mid-19th century.

A few weeks later, Withers learned that the sword had belonged to the illustrious British general Frederick Francis Maude, who likely carried it into battle during the Crimean War—a campaign that featured the famous charge of the Light Brigade. On September 5, 1855, Maude held off an enemy onslaught at Sebastopol with only 10 men and was seriously wounded. For his gallantry and bravery, he was awarded the highest British military honor, the Victoria Cross.

The sword in Withers’ hands was probably present on that fateful day. The fact that its owner had won the Victoria Cross dramatically increased its value. Six months later, Withers sold it for $4,900. "Not bad for a quick six-month investment," he says.

Withers, a British military sword dealer and author of World Swords 1400–1945, An Illustrated Price Guide, claims that the collector’s market is heating up—and there has never been a better time to invest in high-quality swords. In April 2006, a sword at auction at Sotheby’s in Hong Kong set a record. The Baoteng Saber, a jade-hilted, ceremonial sword struck by the smithy of the Qianlong emperor during his reign from 1736 to 1795, sold for $5.93 million to an anonymous Chinese bidder. "I would say the average price of high-end swords is increasing by 20 percent each year," Withers says. "It is the top end of the market that is exploding because there are a limited number of very fine examples, which are becoming increasingly sought after."

Battle Ready
Investors are joining a legion of would-be duelists, samurai, musketeers, gladiators, Scottish Highlanders and Vikings whose quest for the perfect blade has obsessed men for centuries. The quality of sword manufacture often went hand in hand with the rise and fall of empires. At the zenith of their power, these cultures often produced the finest blades: swept, hilted rapiers from the Italian Renaissance; gem-encrusted sabers of the 16th-century Indian moguls; and British naval swords from the time of admiral Lord Nelson and the Battle of Trafalgar. And the one seemingly evergreen high-end sword investment: Japanese swords; blades from the 1300s command $100,000 and more.

Today, a sword’s worth is based on its provenance and, more importantly, on the list of its former owners. Earlier this year, Hessink’s auction house in the Netherlands offered a 16th-century, double-edged executioners sword etched with fanciful engravings that had been made in the German town of Schwäbisch Gmünd. The sword was used to execute at least 1,000 criminals and those deemed to be witches; the deaths are detailed in two chronicles from the time. The sword itself featured the Goddess of Justice holding scales and the inscription: Long is the pain on wheel and rope—so quickly show me your neck. When I give you the deathblow—you will instantly pass on to heaven. The sword fetched $21,961 from an anonymous buyer.

No universal pricing system exists for swords, according to Rob Miller of LionGate Arms & Armour in Scottsdale, Ariz. "The appeal of these things is that you are touching history in some way, that you have something in your hands, like a British cavalry sword that was used in the charge at Waterloo. But really, it is down to what someone is willing to pay for it at the time," Miller says. "A nondescript sword from a certain era of the Civil War could mean a lot to someone whose relative fought in the war in the particular battle the sword is associated with."

VALUE JUDGMENT Investors are now joining a legion of would-be duelists, samurai, gladiators and Vikings whose quest for the perfect blade has obsessed men for centuries. Truly fine swords with remarkable provenance can command five and six figures at auction. Average prices at the market’s high end are increasing by 20 percent annually. Yet collectors should beware: This hobby is awash with fakes, and even the most seasoned collector may have difficulty spotting them.

Greg Martin Auctions in San Francisco recently sold a presentation sword with diamond and amethyst inlay belonging to Civil War general George Henry Thomas. Abraham Lincoln presented the sword to Thomas in December 1864 for his staunch defense of Chickamauga Creek in northwestern Georgia in 1863. The sword, with accompanying documentation, sold for $224,000. "In the American market, swords used to play second fiddle to guns," says Martin, who is also a collector. "Not anymore. There is more and more interest in swords these days as they bring in even greater prices. They have been around a lot longer than guns and provide a unique link to historical events. And their ownership is not restricted by firearms laws—so even someone in New York City, where the gun laws are tight, can collect swords."

Martin began his collection by buying swords from the Revolutionary War period. He sought those with blue blades and brass scabbards. "I gambled on them back in the 1950s and was picking them up for $150 to $200," he says. "That has now paid off handsomely. Today many are easily worth anywhere from $100,000 to $200,000."

Perhaps the most consistently high-priced market—and the only one that has rough pricing guidelines—is the trade in Japanese swords. These are often passed down through families over centuries. They are made by famed swordsmiths with their own schools of apprentices who carry on the traditions of this highly esoteric and specialized craft. Collector Barry Hennick, director of the Japanese Sword Society of the United States, has been studying this field for two decades. "And I’m only now an official beginner," he says.

In 2003, Hennick realized a dream by buying a 14th-century katana sword by master swordsmith Norishige for $77,000. "I held another he had made once, and it literally made my hands sweat with excitement," he says. "Several months later, I had to have one." Maintaining them is an art form as well. Those who polish Japanese swords command a price of $100 an inch. For access to the best sword polishers, such as Jimmy Hayashi in San Francisco, collectors must join a nine-year waiting list.

MADE FOR the Chinese Qianlong emperor in the 1700s, the jade-hilted Baoteng Saber sold for $5.93 million in 2006.

Unlike with other swords, Japanese handles and scabbards comprise a separate field of study. Japanese swords are graded with a bewildering scale of complex quality guides. One of the premier appraisal guides is by Nihon Bijutsu Token Hozon Kyokai (The Society for the Preservation of Japanese Art Swords). This is a tiered sword-rating guide starting at the hozon level (worthy of preservation) going up to the tokubetsu juyo token level (especially important).

When Japanese sword enthusiasts convene, they often attempt to ascertain a sword’s history and manufacture by holding the weapon blindfolded. As a rough rule of thumb, size matters. The longer the blade, the higher the value. Buyers should look for katana blades more than 27 inches in length—these blades command premiums. They should be signed by the swordsmith and have documents attesting to their authenticity. Typically, juyo-level blades start at $20,000, with prized examples fetching far more. A signed juyo blade from the Koto period (pre-1600) made by Tomasa (either the son or grandson of famous Japanese swordsmith Masatsune) was offered recently for $95,000. Fine swords, however, can still be obtained for four figures. "Roughly $8,000 and up is where the quality starts," Hennick says. "Don’t expect to make your money back fast though. Would you buy a Picasso with the intention of flipping it? These are serious long-term investments."

Islamic Icons
In such a heavily researched field, collectors are hard-pressed to find relative bargains among Japanese pieces. But serious devotees agree that one underappreciated area—and one of the best potential investments—is Islamic swords. "They are hugely undervalued for what they are," says Los Angeles collector and dealer Oliver Pinchot. "We all thought 9/11 would bring the Islamic market crashing down around our ears. But it didn’t. It sent it through the roof." Pinchot describes the best of these blades as wonderfully sinuous and curved and ornamented with gems and gold. They can often be found inscribed with prayers for the success of the owner or the name of a ruler at the time they were forged. But unlike European blades, Islamic swords were not mass produced, so collectors cannot date them by arsenal marks or from ordnance records.

Islamic blades are famed for their Damascus steel. This revolutionary sword-making process was first developed 10 centuries ago and struck fear into the European knights during the Crusades. It was said that Damask blades with their distinct "watering" patterns could shred lesser blades like ribbons. Beautiful crescent-shaped shamshir from 18th-century India or Turkish kilijes are wonderfully elaborate, yet woefully underappreciated. They start at roughly $2,000.

Yet would-be collectors should beware of deals that seem too good to be true. The sword market, particularly on eBay, is awash with fakes, and a bogus manufacturing business continues to thrive. "It’s so easy to do," Withers says. "They’ll stick the sword in the ground, leave it there for six months, smear it with horse dung, and then stick it on eBay and say it’s a medieval sword."

Spotting an authentic sword from a replica can be almost impossible, even for professionals. "Everyone from dealers to experts has had his fingers burned at least once," Withers says. "A lot of fake rapiers were made in the 19th century just for house decoration. Telling them from the real thing can be very difficult." He counsels novices to build a relationship with a dealer whom they trust, so that they stand a chance of receiving a refund if an acquisition turns out to be a fake. Most collectors spend years gaining the confidence to buy a sword without professional guidance.

But perhaps the best advice is to try to follow the example of those whose investment in a sword was literally a life-or-death proposition, according to Pinchot. "Pick it up, feel its form, feel how it sits in your hand. Does it feel good to hold? And then try to imagine if you—like the previous owner—would ride out and stake your life on it."

Photographs by Sotheby’s Hong Kong.

Jonathan Green is a freelance writer based in New York.