Archaeologists had been excavating an area in the region of Rychnov nad Kneznou in north-east Bohemia, when they came across the sword. The sword has an ornamental engraving and a very sharp blade and was found alongside several rivets which were used to secure the sword handle to the blade. A bronze spear head from about the same period also featured.
Although the region is well-known for its Bronze Age artefacts, it is still extremely rare to come across swords.
Martina Bekova from the Rychnov museum said: “The bronze sword with its tongue handle is dated around 1200 BC, it belongs to the Lusatian culture.
“The findings of this culture are numerous in East Bohemia, but this is not true of swords.”
She added that only five prehistoric swords have been found in the Czech Republic over the last decade.
Ms Bekova refused to divulge the exact location of the excavations in an attempt to protect the site.
She said: “I can only say that the finding is from the southern part of the Rychnov region from a hitherto unknown site.”
Experts believe that the sword was buried as part of a religious ritual.
Ms Berkova explained: “It is most likely a unique votive gift to an unknown deity.
JUST IN: Archaeology breakthrough: Scientists unravel major discovery
One of the most significant discoveries of Bronze Age artefacts in the UK was made in Scotland two tears ago.
A team of archaeologists from GUARD Archaeology came across a gold-decorated Late Bronze Age spearhead, as well as a bronze sword, pin and scabbard fittings.
It is one of only a handful of gold-decorated bronze spearheads ever found in Britain and Ireland.
The weapon was discovered during an archaeological evaluation on land being developed into council football pitches at Balmachie in Carnoustie by Angus council.
GUARD Archaeology’s project officer Alan Hunter Blair said: “The earliest Celtic myths often highlight the reflectivity and brilliance of heroic weapons.
“Gold decoration was probably added to this bronze spearhead to exalt it both through the material’s rarity and its visual impact.”
The archaeologists said the rare survival of organic remains – a leather and wooden scabbard, fur skin around the spearhead, and textile around the pin and scabbard – made the find even more significant.
Mr Blair added: “The hoard of artefacts, which are around 3,000 years old, is the find of a lifetime.
“It is very unusual to recover such artefacts in a modern archaeological excavation, which can reveal so much about the context of its burial.”
The archaeological digs also unearthed the largest Neolithic haul so far found in Scotland, dating from about 4000 BC.