Quote Originally Posted by Philipvs Vallindervs Calicvla
Well, I saw a comparisn of Roman swords found in Britain, only one was properly quenched and one (The "Tiberius" Gladius) had had it's edges so ground down that the carbonising on the outside of the blade was completely gone and the smith had worked through to soft iron underneath.

On the other hand Caesar's side-arm in Gaul was probably Iberian Steel.
Ah, as I suspected then. We get used to thinking of "mass produced" in modern terms where one BMW is pretty much identical to the next BMW. Must play some hell drawing any real conclusions beyond what the local metals and craftsmen were like (presuming the poor sod wasn't a transfer :p)

Thanks :)