Swedish-American girl Saga Vanecek has made headlines in Sweden and abroad after she pulled a 1,500-year-old sword from the waters of Vidöstern Lake during a summer vacation, which her family spent at their summer home there.
Due to a drought, the water level of the lake was unusually low. The Vaneceks placed a buoy in the waters near their house to warn boats about a concrete slab under the water, and eventually asked Saga to retrieve it, which took her longer time than they expected. However, the father didn’t suspect at first what kept her in the water.
"I was outside in the water, throwing sticks and stones and stuff to see how far they skip, and then I found some kind of stick. I picked it up and was going to drop it back in the water, but it had a handle, and I saw that it was a little bit pointy at the end and all rusty. I held it up in the air and I said 'Daddy, I found a sword!' When he saw that it was bent and was rusty, he came running up and took it," she told the web-based media outlet The Local.
The family at first thought the finding was just a simple stick, then suspected a toy sword, but eventually decided to ask neighbors and Vanecek's colleague, a history buff, who advised the family to inform the authorities about the piece of armor, which seemed authentic.
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According to the museum which examined the sword, it was created in the 5th or 6th century, even before the Viking era began. A brooch, dating back to the same time, was later discovered around the same place. In order to prevent the inadvertent destruction of any additional relics the lake may conceal, the museum asked Saga and her family to keep it a secret.
But as soon as the story was out, it made a big splash in the news and on social media, which buzzed about the numerous delightful coincidences in Saga’s story, while users pledged allegiance to their new-found Queen.
Some praised her as a new super-hero, destined, no less, to save the world.
Some just couldn’t avoid making the comparison to another pulling-the-sword-out-of-a–lake story, about King Arthur. A few immediately pronounced her Queen of the World.
Her symbolic name got particular buzz.
The Vikings, an American football team from Minnesota, where Saga’s family used to live, couldn’t help but joining in the hype.