The Singing Sword is the primary weapon of the fictional character Prince Valiant, a Knight of the Round Table in the service of King Arthur, in the long running comic strip Prince Valiant. Hal Foster created Prince Valiant in 1937.
The Singing Sword's first appearance in Prince Valiant lore came in the "Ilene Abducted" story, first published in 1938. In this story, the original owner of the sword is Prince Arn of Ord, Valiant's rival for the beautiful maid Ilene. The two men put aside their differences when their beloved is kidnapped by Viking raiders. Arn lends Valiant the charmed sword so that he can hold off their pursuers while Arn rides ahead to free Ilene. The pair's efforts prove futile; they discover she was killed in a shipwreck. Arn gives the Singing Sword to Valiant following this adventure, and the two part as friends. Later in the series, the Singing Sword is established as a sister to King Arthur's Excalibur.
Famous quotes containing the words singing and/or sword:
“Instead of singing like the birds, I silently smiled at my incessant good fortune.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“A boy not beautiful, nor good, nor clever,
A black cloud full of storms too hot for keeping,
A sword beneath his mother’s heart— yet never
Woman bewept her babe as this is weeping.”
—John Crowe Ransom (1888–1974)